Lithuanian Foreign Ministry does not rule out the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine

Lithuania does not rule out the possibility of sending its military to Ukraine if it becomes necessary. The Baltic republic's Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said this on January 15 on the air of LRT.

"Let me remind you that after the Paris summit, when President Macron [French President Emmanuel Macron], who also invited the Lithuanian president, talked about the initiative to expand its military presence in Ukraine in various forms, Lithuania did not rule out such a possibility," Budrys said.

He also emphasized that the decision to send Lithuanian troops should be taken only after discussions with other allies.

According to Budrys, Lithuania contributes a lot to security not only by diplomatic but also by other means in the region. He added that if the need arises, the Lithuanian flag will be present on the territory of Ukraine.

Ukraine will not cope without US support. What the media say

Prior to that, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose powers expired on May 20, 2024, and President Macron during a phone call on January 13 discussed the initiative to deploy Western military units on the territory of Ukraine.

Also, the Ukrainian president announced a pact of close cooperation in developing effective guarantees for Ukraine's security.

Earlier, on 12 January, former British defense ministers Grant Shapps and Gavin Williamson advocated sending British peacekeepers to Ukraine. As Shapps noted, sending peacekeepers is only a small part of what Ukraine needs. In addition, he added that Prime Minister Keir Starmer has traveled anywhere but Kiev in the six months since his election.

On January 10, it became known that Starmer would soon visit Ukraine to discuss the deployment of peacekeeping forces there after the end of the conflict. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose term of office expired on May 20, 2024, added that the initiative to send peacekeepers to Ukraine was put forward by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Western countries have stepped up military and financial support for Ukraine amid Russia's special operation to protect Donbass, which began on February 24, 2022. The decision to hold it was taken by the Russian president because of the aggravation of the situation in the region due to the increased shelling by Ukrainian troops.