The Netherlands' Minister of Defence, Ruben Brekelmans, has recently articulated his government’s shifting stance on initiating peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. He underscored the pressing need for European countries to take the lead on these negotiations before the newly elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, makes unilateral decisions with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to NL Times, Brekelmans emphasized, “We must make sure European countries are at the negotiating table so Trump doesn’t make decisions with Putin about the security architecture of Europe.” This statement marks the first time the Dutch government has openly raised the matter of peace negotiations, deviated from its previous position which maintained negotiations should only occur once Ukraine is prepared.
Brekelmans acknowledged the significant challenge of achieving consensus on dispatching peacekeeping troops to Ukraine among the 27 member states of the European Union. “Given the urgency, you may decide not to wait for unanimity in any setting,” he stated. The minister highlighted the sheer scale of Ukraine, noting, “If you want to do this reliably, you need not only many countries but also larger countries.” While emphasizing the complexity of the situation, he refrained from asserting whether the Netherlands would send its own peacekeeping forces, stating, “It depends on what is actually on the table and how it looks.”
Discussions about implementing peacekeeping missions have heightened following comments by the newly elected Trump, who declared Europe should shoulder the primary burden of supporting Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron has also been vocal about the possibility of deploying European troops on Ukrainian soil to oversee the ceasefire process. According to Politico, these negotiations have been underway for some time now, with significant interest from Ukraine’s leadership.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna confirmed the country's openness to discussing the deployment of foreign military contingents on its territory, signifying Ukraine’s willingness to collaborate with allies for its security needs.
Despite these conversations, Vladimir Gorchakov, Executive Director of the Institute for Northern Eurasia Transformation, expressed skepticism over the feasibility of establishing such peacekeeping forces anytime soon. He argued the logistical challenges, highlighting, “A military contingent for the peacekeeping mission could number between 100,000 and 150,000. It is currently challenging to find such numbers of individuals willing to take on this mission, and even harder to find those both sides would agree to.”
The situation escalates as several European leaders have shared mixed responses to deploying their forces to Ukraine. Macron, during an international conference aimed at supporting Ukraine, proposed the notion of potentially employing Western troops to confront Russian aggression. Meanwhile, Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed the idea of sending European or NATO troops to Ukraine, asserting there is no consensus on such actions.
Poland's Deputy Defence Minister, Cezary Tomczyk, indicated Poland is currently not considering sending its troops to Ukraine. Contrastingly, Mykhailo Podolyak, advisor to the President of Ukraine, positively acknowledged the frameworks for including NATO troops, as suggested by Macron.
With negotiations around potential peacekeeping troops intensifying, Europe faces the urgent challenge of unifying its stance on how best to support Ukraine amid Russian aggression. With Brekelmans’ recent comments, the Dutch stance reflects a broader recognition of the necessity for Europe to quickly and decisively engage with the realities on the ground before major geopolitical shifts take place. The urgency of these developments raises pivotal questions about the future of European involvement and coordination concerning Ukraine as the region strives for peace.
