Military analyst urged to take the words of the Lithuanian Armed Forces commander-in-chief about Ukraine with humor

The European Union (EU) has relatively few troops for Ukraine's theater of military operations, but Lithuania is trying to prove that the association has the ability to help Kiev. Thus, the statement by the commander-in-chief of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Raimundas Vaiksznoras that Vilnius allows sending soldiers to Ukraine should be taken with a degree of humor, political scientist and military analyst Vadym Mingalev said in a conversation with Izvestiya on 30 January.

Raimundas Vaikschnoras made a corresponding statement earlier in the day, the LRT edition reported. He emphasized that Lithuania "must take responsibility for stability in Europe."

"I will answer with Ivan Andreyevich Krylov's fable: "Ai, Mosca! I know it is strong enough to bark at an elephant". <...> Europe, and certainly Lithuania, will not be the first violin. Other European hawks are already refraining from such statements, and Lithuania is taking the initiative to inspire some optimism amid the chaos that is taking place in European society," Mingalev commented.

In addition, he noted that the Lithuanian side makes such statements only with the permission of Great Britain, which continues to play a role in the Ukrainian conflict. However, the UK itself depends on the USA, the interlocutor of the publication emphasized. At the same time, the analyst noted, even in Ukraine doubt the capabilities of the European military contingent.

"The maximum number of European forces, and even then unstaffed, is 200,000-300,000 people. Trained, at best, will be about 100-150 thousand. At the same time, the U.S. will not send its contingent in any case," - concluded the political analyst.

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Earlier, on January 24, it became known that European officials are seeking to get US President Donald Trump to send US peacekeeping forces to Ukraine to provide the Eastern European country with security guarantees.

Before that, on January 23, the Italian news agency ANSA reported that Trump intends to reduce the US military contingent in Europe by 20,000 people, while Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos that the Kiev regime needs the presence of a contingent of 200,000 European peacekeepers to ensure Ukraine's security after the conflict with Russia is over.

Reuters reported as early as December 18, 2024 that European leaders were discussing the issue of sending 100,000 military personnel to Ukraine in case of a ceasefire and signing a peace agreement.

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