France may send special forces to Ukraine to create "strategic ambiguity" for Russia
The actions of these services are by their nature secret and, therefore, go beyond the law of war
The French authorities are considering allowing special forces and military units to cross the border of Ukraine, Le Monde newspaper reports.
According to the newspaper's sources, Paris is proposing to allow special forces and other military units to cross the Ukrainian border in order to create a "strategic dilemma" for Russia. The newspaper's sources believe that the presence of French troops will help protect some Ukrainian territories from Russian attacks.
At the moment, the French authorities deny the presence of their military in Ukraine. At the same time, since the beginning of the invasion, the country has been home to government officials associated with Western intelligence services, often with military status, including undercover agents, the newspaper notes.
"The actions of these services are by their nature secret and, therefore, go beyond the law of war," said Vincent Kruse, a former employee of the French Directorate General of External Security.
Emmanuel Macron was the first to say that EU countries could send their troops to Ukraine.
"Today there is no consensus on sending ground troops in an official, predictable and approved way. But in the future, nothing can be ruled out," Macron said following the summit in Paris.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg denied the French president's words about the possibility of sending alliance troops to Ukraine.
In an interview with France Inter, French Foreign Minister Stéphane Sejourne said that France had set clear limits to its involvement in the conflict: to prevent Russia from winning without waging war with it.
"The framework set by President [Macron], without excluding anything, allows us to send a very clear signal to Russia that we will not give up the fight with the Ukrainians," Séjourne said.
Regarding Macron's statement about the possible deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine, Sejourne said it promotes "strategic ambiguity".
As a reminder, several countries have expressed their readiness to send troops to Ukraine. Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said that Ottawa could send a limited number of troops to train the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said that the country was considering "all possibilities" without exception. The Lithuanian authorities noted that they could send some troops to train Ukrainian soldiers, adding that the priority would remain the supply of weapons and ammunition.
The Chief of Defence Staff of the Netherlands, General Onno Eichelsheim, said that he considers it possible to send soldiers to Ukraine, noting, however, that "it is not the right time for this". The UK has no plans for a large-scale deployment of troops in Ukraine, said Prime Minister's spokesman Rishi Sunak, but there are already a number of British troops there.
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