Turkey is ready to send peacekeepers to Ukraine

Turkey is prepared to send its peacekeepers to Ukraine if necessary.

The Ministry of Defense in Ankara stated this on Thursday, as quoted by the AFP news agency.

“The issue of participation in the mission… will be assessed with all stakeholders if it is deemed necessary to establish regional stability and peace,” the statement reads.

Bloomberg previously reported that President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the issue with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at separate meetings in Ankara.

“As a member of NATO and the OSCE, Turkey is an integral part of the European security architecture with its developed defense industry, an important role in resolving regional crises, and a powerful army,” the Turkish officials noted.

The form of a possible peacekeeping mission in Ukraine has been the subject of intense discussion in NATO countries for several weeks.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday that a meeting of the chiefs of staff of countries ready to guarantee future peace will be held in Paris next week.

March 6 meeting

Following the meetings in Paris and London, European leaders are gathering for an “urgent summit” in Brussels on March 6.

This will be the first EU summit to formally discuss a peacekeeping mission for Ukraine.

A senior EU official stated that, on the one hand, the topic of peacekeepers is premature, as there is no ceasefire or peace talks yet, but on the other hand, “it is something that needs to be worked on.”

“Many of our member states have already stated that they are ready to participate. So it is important that, first, we recognize this, and second, that the EU can discuss among leaders what kind of framework we are ready to provide,” a senior EU official noted.

At the same time, the EU ambassadors remind that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be Ukraine’s primary security guarantors, supported by the EU with training, funding, and weapons. The European peacekeeping mission should be an additional element, and not all EU member states will participate in it, but countries outside the bloc, such as the United Kingdom and possibly Turkey, will also be involved.