Inside the ukraine peacekeeping plan starmer will present to trump next week
Sir Keir Starmer is set to present Donald Trump with a Ukraine peacekeeping plan when the two leaders meet next week, following the former president’s blistering attack on Volodymyr Zelensky.
The british prime minister is expected to propose the deployment of European forces to Ukrainian cities, ports, and critical infrastructure sites to help secure peace following any ceasefire brokered by the United States. The proposed operation will reportedly involve fewer than 30,000 troops—far fewer than the 200,000 requested by Zelensky in the event of a truce.
These troops would be stationed far from the front lines, acting as a ‘reassurance’ force for civilians and encouraging the millions of Ukrainians who fled the war to return home. The mission will rely heavily on ‘technical monitoring’, including the use of satellites, spy planes, and drones to provide a comprehensive overview of the situation, according to a Western official speaking to The Telegraph.
However, the peacekeeping force would be backed by sufficient firepower to ‘monitor and shoot down’ any attacks by Russian forces. Naval warships could also be deployed in the Black Sea as part of the operation. Starmer has made it clear that any European-led peacekeeping effort would only be viable with a ‘US backstop’ to deter further hostilities from Russia.
‘The purpose of the backstop would be to have confidence that whatever forces are deployed will not be challenged by Russia,’ the Western official said. This backstop could potentially involve US fighter jets stationed in Romania and Poland, providing additional security.
Trump has yet to confirm whether he would support such an operation, but his defence chief, Pete Hegseth, has already ruled out the possibility of American troops being sent to Ukraine. Meanwhile, the Kremlin has dismissed as ‘unacceptable’ any suggestion that European or NATO forces could be deployed in the country.
Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to visit Washington next week for discussions. The meeting follows an extraordinary attack on Zelensky by Trump, who labelled the Ukrainian president ‘a dictator without elections’ for postponing the vote. Trump also falsely claimed that Ukraine had instigated the war with Russia, stating: ‘You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.’
Russia, however, started the war by invading Ukraine, where politicians from all parties voted in November to delay elections until the conflict ends. While Zelensky’s popularity has declined during the prolonged invasion, polling data indicates that 57% of Ukrainian voters still trust him.
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Zelensky responded to Trump’s comments, stating: ‘We have evidence that these figures are being discussed between America and Russia. President Trump, unfortunately, lives in this disinformation space.’
Shortly after, Trump hit back online, referring to Zelensky as a ‘moderately successful comedian’ who had done a ‘terrible job’ as president but had ‘played [US President] Joe Biden like a fiddle’. He went on to add: ‘A dictator without elections, Zelensky better move fast or he is not going to have a country left.’
Meanwhile, Russia’s continued assault on Ukrainian infrastructure has left 160,000 Ukrainians facing freezing conditions. Russian forces recently launched 167 drones into the Odesa region, targeting energy infrastructure and exacerbating the ongoing humanitarian crisis.
With diplomatic tensions escalating and Trump’s position on the conflict remaining uncertain, Starmer’s proposed peacekeeping initiative will be closely watched as he seeks to navigate the delicate geopolitical landscape surrounding the war in Ukraine.
