Ukraine Needs Tens Of Thousands Of European Soldiers To Guarantee Long-Term Security

Ukrainian Military/PHOTO via Instagram @uaf_general_staff

JAKARTA - The head of the German army union stressed that European NATO leaders were not naive when discussing the Ukrainian peacekeepers. They are said to need to deploy tens of thousands of troops to the country for the long term.

US President Donald Trump is trying to mediate the peace between Moscow and Kyiv, but has ruled out the possibility of sending US troops to Ukraine.

French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have spoken in support of deploying troops in postwar settlements as part of the coalition.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also hinted at openness to German participation.

Colonel Andre Wuestner, head of the German Armed Forces Association, on Thursday, August 21, called on European leaders not to underestimate military duties but to be honest about the challenges that exist, although a quick ceasefire seems impossible.

"It will not be enough to just place a handful of smaller generals and military units at a command post in Ukraine," Wuestner, whose organization represents more than 200,000 active and retired troops, told Reuters.

"From the start, it must be explained to Putin that we are really serious about security guarantees," he said.

"Seriously supporting Ukraine, seriously securing a ceasefire, and seriously about our response if Putin tries to attack Ukraine again," he continued.

He estimates that each major country in coalitions, such as Britain, France, and Germany, will need to deploy at least 10,000 troops to Ukraine for the long term, which will pose a major challenge to their already overwhelmed and underdeveloped troops.

"Europe remains a dwarf country in terms of the military and has struggled to fulfill the new NATO commitments they made at the last summit," said Wuestner.

"Europe is still far from being able to defend itself independently," he added.

Therefore, there is an urgent need to ultimately accelerate weaponry and strengthen the pillars of NATO in Europe.