Decision on sending British troops to Ukraine must be put to parliamentary vote – Starmer
The decision to deploy British troops to Ukraine after a ceasefire must be approved by a vote in the House of Commons.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated this during a speech in the House of Commons, Ukrinform reports, citing Sky News.
Starmer spoke about his trip to Paris yesterday for a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing. As part of this, the British prime minister reiterated his commitment to send peacekeeping forces to Ukraine together with France after a ceasefire.
"I will keep the House updated as the situation develops. And were troops to be deployed under the declaration signed, I would put that matter to the House for a vote," Starmer said.
He added that "if there were to be a deployment, there would have to be a legal instrument, deployment would only be after a ceasefire to support Ukraine's capabilities."
Starmer reported that yesterday in Paris he met with some NATO allies, including senior advisers to Trump. He added that he would speak with US President Donald Trump in the future.
Regarding the number of troops that could be deployed in Ukraine, Starmer did not provide figures, saying that this would be decided closer to the date of deployment.
As Ukrinform reported, on January 6, following a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris, the Presidents of Ukraine and France, Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a Declaration of Intent regarding the deployment of multinational forces.
According to Starmer, the declaration by Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and France on the intention to deploy foreign forces in Ukraine in the event of a peace agreement creates a legal basis for operations by partner countries' troops on Ukrainian territory.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that several thousand French soldiers could be deployed in Ukraine after a ceasefire, but they would not take part in combat operations.
Photo: Office of the President