Russia has said that any multinational force sent to Ukraine after the agreement of a peace deal would be viewed as a legitimate military target, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
“We would like to once again emphasize that our country considers the deployment of any military contingents from the countries of the so-called Coalition of the Willing to Ukraine unacceptable,” Zakharova said during a July 15 press briefing, according to state-run news agency TASS.
“I repeat once again: this will de facto mean foreign intervention and an increase in threats to Russia’s security. Such units will be regarded by us as legitimate military targets.”
The coalition met on July 13 in Paris and reaffirmed its support for Kyiv. In a joint statement by the three co-chairs, they reaffirmed their intention to deploy such a multinational force after a peace deal is agreed.
The Coalition of the Willing said in the joint statement that a peace agreement would need to be backed “by politically and legally binding security guarantees,” as set out in the Paris Declaration.
“These guarantees will be defensive in their nature,” the statement said.
“Their purpose is to prevent a renewal of Russian aggression against Ukraine and ensure stability and security in Europe. This will be alongside long-term military assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
The Paris Declaration, signed on Jan. 6, states that once hostilities cease, a “Multinational Force for Ukraine” (MNF-U) composed of contributions from the coalition would “support the rebuilding of Ukraine’s armed forces and support deterrence.”
The Coalition of the Willing also said on July 13 that exercises involving the MNF-U will take place in the coming months to demonstrate its ability to act, “once hostilities have ceased.”
The MNF-U “is ready to operate and to act to regenerate Ukrainian forces and provide reassurance to Ukraine within its territory, on the ground, in the air and at sea, at Ukraine’s request, once a credible cessation of hostilities is in place,” the statement said.
Previous Warnings Over Multinational Force
Russia has previously said that it would not accept the presence of foreign troops in Ukraine and would view them as legitimate military targets.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said at the time that the UK and France would establish “military hubs” across Ukraine and build facilities for weapons and military equipment.
French President Emmanuel Macron had said these security guarantees “are key to ensuring that a peace agreement can never amount to a Ukrainian surrender and that a peace agreement can never result in a new threat to Ukraine.”
“All such units and facilities will be considered as legitimate military targets for the Russian Armed Forces. Warnings to this effect have been repeatedly made at the highest level and remain relevant,” she said.
The Russia–Ukraine war is in its fifth year.
According to a July 15 war report card from Russia Matters, a project by Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Russian forces control around 20 percent of Ukraine, which includes Crimea and parts of Donbas that Russia had seized prior to the full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
