Keir Starmer
Credit: The New York Times
Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday offered British troops to help guarantee Ukraine's security as part of any peace deal, as he and other European leaders rushed to coordinate a response to President Donald Trump's opening of talks with Russia about ending the war in Ukraine.
In an article published in The Daily Telegraph on Sunday, Starmer wrote that he was "ready and willing to contribute to security guarantees to Ukraine by putting our own troops on the ground if necessary."
It was the first time Starmer had explicitly said that he was considering sending British troops to Ukraine. It came on the eve of an emergency meeting of European leaders in Paris on Monday, to formulate a response to Trump's push for a settlement -- one that appeared to leave Europe and Ukraine with no clear role in the process.
In the article, Starmer wrote that he was not committing British troops lightly. But "securing a lasting peace in Ukraine that safeguards its sovereignty for the long term is essential if we are to deter Putin from further aggression in the future," he wrote, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"The end of this war, when it comes, cannot merely become a temporary pause before Putin attacks again," Starmer added.
US and Russian officials are expected to meet in Saudi Arabia this week for the start of talks aimed at ending the war. The discussions are said to be preliminary. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that if an opportunity presented itself for a "broader conversation," it would include Ukraine and Europe.
But the talks underscore that Trump has an accelerated timetable for reaching a deal to end the war and that he appears determined to conduct negotiations with Russia bilaterally, at least for now. Ukraine confirmed Sunday that it would not take part in the discussions in Saudi Arabia.
The meeting Monday in Paris will include Starmer and the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands and Denmark, as well as top officials of the European Union and NATO. The leaders say they will discuss the war and European security.
Starmer wrote in his article that he would urge the other leaders to increase military spending and take on a greater role in NATO. He added that Ukraine's path to joining NATO was "irreversible."
Starmer, who is expected to meet with Trump in the coming weeks, wrote that Europe and the United States must continue to work closely to secure a lasting peace deal. "A US security guarantee is essential for a lasting peace, because only the US can deter Putin from attacking again," he wrote.