In case Friedrich Merz’s rebuttal of Brussels’ suggestion there are “pretty precise plans” for a multinational troop deployment to Ukraine wasn’t enough, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has also now poured a bucket full of cold water over the idea that serious talks are underway.
EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen last week told reporters that European capitals already have “a clear road map” for Ukrainian “security guarantees,” although Merz later stressed: “Nobody is talking about ground troops in Ukraine at this point.”
Pistorius has since gone a step further, saying not only that talk isn’t underway but that Brussels lacks the mandate to discuss troop deployment even if it wanted to.
Translations vary in different publications, but the EU comes out badly in all cases, either having “no responsibilities and no competences” or “no authority or competence whatsoever regarding the deployment of troops,” for “anyone or for anything.”
This, as we previously reported, is “symptomatic of Europe’s struggle to agree on a coherent strategy.”
The German defence minister also said it was “fundamentally wrong” to discuss the deployment of troops before peace negotiations—a line that has been repeatedly pushed by Donald Trump’s administration.
Writer Samuel Charap described Pistorius’ as “a more grounded assessment.”
Ironically, those countries which are openly discussing sending troops to Ukraine—the UK and France in particular—appear to be the least capable of following up on their lofty assurances.
