European leaders failed to reach an agreement Monday on sending troops to Ukraine to enforce a possible peace deal, despite efforts led by French President Emmanuel Macron to present a united front following an emergency meeting. The situation has devolved to the point that at least one politician is using the Nobel Peace Prize as a carrot on a stick for President Donald Trump.
The meeting in Brussels was called after news emerged that the United States had begun negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine—without including European representatives or Ukraine itself, to the chagrin of European leaders.
Following a 3.5-hour meeting at the Elysée Palace, no concrete decisions were made. “We realize that such meetings do not end in decisions,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said, according to Politico.
The leaders remained divided on the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine, instead committing to supporting Ukraine and increasing defense spending. "Today in Paris we reaffirmed that Ukraine deserves peace through strength," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa in a joint statement.
A key issue was whether European forces should be deployed to Ukraine if a peace deal is reached. US President Donald Trump has ruled out sending American troops and has opposed Ukraine receiving NATO membership, leaving Europe responsible for maintaining security. The US has asked European NATO members to clarify what support they would provide in enforcing a peace deal.
France and the UK backed the idea of sending troops, though UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasized that such a move would require American involvement. He stressed the need for a “US backstop” to prevent future Russian aggression against Ukraine, reports the BBC.
However, Poland, a key military player in the region, opposed the idea. "We do not anticipate sending Polish soldiers to Ukraine," Tusk stated before departing for Paris. A senior Polish official explained that Poland's military resources are needed to secure its own borders with Russia’s Kaliningrad and Belarus. “The French are far away so they can send soldiers to Ukraine; we’re close so we cannot,” the official said.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed the discussion on troop deployment as “completely premature” and “highly inappropriate” while the war is ongoing. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also expressed hesitation, stating that "many, many" details would need to be clarified before such a step could be taken.
Poland’s Radosław Sikorski said recently during a panel that he would remind Trump that peace needs to be achieved to maintain the US's credibility and that Trump should be mindful of the Nobel Peace Prize: "I would tell him three things. Number one, Joe Biden was your successor and predecessor. He planted the flag of the United States in downtown Kyiv and declared on behalf of the United States that the US would be with Ukraine for as long as it takes until Ukraine secures its independence. Therefore, the credibility of the United States depends on how this war ends— not just the Trump administration, the United States itself. I would secondly tell him, that if you allow Putin to vassalize Ukraine, that will send a message to China that you can recover what you regard as a renegade province. That would have direct consequences for… the US system of alliances, and possibly for the future of Taiwan.
"And I’d thirdly tell him that we Europeans control the Nobel Peace Prize,” he said to laughter and applause from the crowd. “If you want to earn it, the peace has to be fair.”
