After almost four years of major conflict, Ukraine has been given a series of concrete security guarantees — backed by more than 30 countries including Canada — that it can take into possible peace talks with Russia.
The agreement, backed by the “coalition of the willing,” provides specific troop commitments from Western nations to deter Russia from restarting the war, should a ceasefire take effect.
“This all about building the practical foundations on which peace would rest, said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who indicated the hardest work is yet to come.
“We can only get to a peace deal if Putin is willing to make compromises. And so, we have to be frank: for all Russia’s words, Putin is showing that he’s not ready for peace.”
As part of the guarantees signed Tuesday, the U.S. has pledged to help monitor a potential ceasefire.
France and the U.K. have promised to put boots on the ground in Ukraine if a ceasefire takes effect in order to build up regional supply centres that would pave the way for a larger troop deployment if Russia resumed its offensive.
Canada has promised a substantial ongoing commitment to the force that would backstop the peace deal. Precisely what kind of forces Canada would deploy is unclear, partly because the military, short of personnel and equipment, is in rebuilding mode.
Going into the meeting, Prime Minister Mark Carney was asked if Canada had the capacity to back up its commitment.
“Do we have the, the bench strength, to use your terms? Well, we’ve been building that bench,” Carney said. “We’re going to continue to build that bench [with] the largest military buildup in generations coming over the course of the next five years.”
He said the government’s planned $81.8-billion defence investment over that period was “in part because of issues like this.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the agreement “a very concrete document” and thanked the countries involved.
Reaching that agreement had been a struggle as leaders were distracted by U.S. military action in Venezuela and renewed threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to annex Greenland.
