Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen suggested that Western nations, including the United States, should remain open to the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine should conditions deteriorate further.
Speaking to NatSec Daily on Saturday, quoted by Politico, Valtonen said that the West should at least not rule out any options for the long term, given the unpredictable nature of the situation.
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“It's important that we not rule everything out for the long term, because we never know how serious the situation becomes,” Valtonen said in an interview.
“But the Finnish position is clear: We are not right now sending any troops and not willing to discuss that,” she added.
Valtonen stressed the importance of continued assistance to Ukraine, noting Finland's contributions to NATO's efforts. She called on European countries to do more to support Ukraine during this critical time.
This statement follows French President Emmanuel Macron's recent refusal to dismiss the idea of sending troops to Ukraine, which has caused divisions among U.S. and European leaders.
Despite this, Washington has expressed reservations about the proposal.
“The only US military personnel in Ukraine were with the American embassy in Kyiv "doing important work" on the accountability of weapons provided to Ukraine,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
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Kirby denied that US troops could be sent for demining, arms production or cyber operations, as French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne had suggested Western troops could be.
He added that it would be a "sovereign decision" for France or any other NATO country whether to send troops to Ukraine.
At the same time, Former U.S. ambassadors to NATO, Ivo Daalder and Kurt Volker, support the idea of keeping the option of troop deployment open. They believe it sends a strong signal of support to Ukraine and may help deter further aggression from Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned against such deployments, viewing them as a significant escalation that could lead to nuclear war.
In an interview with Russian propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov on March 12, the Kremlin Chief said that if the US military were to enter Ukraine, Russia would “treat them as interventionists.”
“Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here,” Putin said in a wide-ranging interview with state media.
Putin’s latest comments came just days ahead of elections in Russia that are all but guaranteed to hand him another six years in power and as his military posts gains in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has touted its nuclear prowess throughout its two-year full-scale offensive in Ukraine, last month warning Western countries there was a “real” risk of nuclear catastrophe if they escalated the conflict.
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