German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said discussions on potential German troop deployments to Ukraine are “premature” and said he was “irritated” by the question when answering reporters after Monday’s emergency summit in Paris.
“It is completely premature and the completely wrong time to be having this discussion now. I am even a little irritated by these debates,” Scholz told reporters when prompted if he would consider the idea.
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He said the peace talks on ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are not set in stone, and it would be too early to even discuss troop deployments at this stage.
During his speech, Scholz said Ukraine should be able to defend itself and called for continued backing for Kyiv. Scholz also discussed potential EU spending reforms, adding that there is a need to look for new financial streams to support Ukraine without cutting domestic spending.
Earlier, German defense officials said troop deployments might be considered once a framework is in place, Reuters reported.
Prior to the summit, British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said London is open to sending troops to Ukraine as part of future security guarantees.
Monday’s last-minute summit in Paris, with multiple European leaders in attendance, was called after the US announced over the weekend that Europe would be left out of key peace talks regarding Russia’s invasion.
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Top diplomats from the US and Russia are set to convene in Saudi Arabia to initiate peace talks without Ukraine and Europe’s participation at the current stage, prompting backlash from European leaders.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that he would not recognize the results from Tuesday’s talks between the US and Russia in Saudi Arabia to which Ukraine was not invited.
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