London is not planning to deploy its military personnel on the ground in Ukraine, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy told journalists at the G7's ministerial meeting on Nov. 25.
Lammy's comments came after the French outlet Le Monde reported that the U.K. and France have been discussing deploying soldiers or private defense contractors in Ukraine following Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. election.
"We are not committing U.K. troops on the ground to Ukraine, but we continue to support Ukraine with training and military assistance, and we have been absolutely clear that we will continue to do that for as long as is required and is needed," Lammy said.
"That is certainly the U.K. position and remains the U.K. position at this time."
French President Emmanuel Macron previously suggested deploying military trainers to Ukraine, but the idea has met strong opposition among several key allies, namely Germany.
Le Monde wrote, citing undisclosed sources, that the matter was brought up during British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's visit to France on Nov. 11. The U.K. and France are reportedly considering taking the lead in the pro-Kyiv coalition in the light of Trump's reelection.
Trump has criticized military support for Ukraine and pledged to bring a quick end to the war, sparking fears he might withdraw Washington's crucial backing.
Responding to a question about France deploying its troops in Ukraine, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told the media that France would "not discard any option."
While the G7 foreign ministers were meeting in Italy, the defense ministers of the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, and Poland met in Berlin in a new "E5 format" to discuss increasing defense spending and supporting Ukraine.
Speaking at the meeting, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius pledged to keep the Ukraine Defense Contact Group "alive," while his British counterpart, John Healey, said that Europe must "double" its support for Kyiv.
Oleg Sukhov
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