French President Emmanuel Macron said that sending NATO soldiers to Ukraine must not be ruled out. As the war between Russia and Ukraine enters its third year, NATO allies are debating how to support Ukraine against the Putin invasion.
The war is slowly tipping in Russia’s favor. Ukraine lost the eastern city of Avdiivka this last week, giving Russia its biggest victory of the war. Russia has also made gains around the southern city of Bakhmut, repelling the gains made by Ukraine over the summer. This has inflamed the debate among NATO countries about sending ground forces into Ukraine.
Macron is concerned that Russia’s territorial ambitions are not limited to Ukraine. “Nothing should be excluded. We will do everything that we can to make sure that Russia does not prevail,” a passionate Macron said in an address to 20 European leaders in a conference to support Ukraine.
Many European leaders are concerned that Putin will not stop with the annexation of Ukraine, which is a former territory of the Soviet Union. Three sovereign nations that were also a part of the Soviet Union could be in Putin’s sights.
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are small countries to the northwest of Russia. Unlike Ukraine, these former Soviet states are members of NATO and will have the protection of the NATO alliance if they are attacked.
Other NATO allies disagree with putting troops into Ukraine and are not committed to that level of support. The Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, and Sweden are against sending troops to fight Russia in Ukraine. The Czech Republic is advocating that NATO send hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition to Ukraine.
Ukrainian generals are concerned about the severe shortages of weapons, ammunition, and soldiers. NATO members were in talks about delivering long-range missiles to Ukraine.
In Russia, the Kremlin has stated that if NATO sends troops to join the fight, there will be an inevitable war between Russia and NATO.
Allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned French President @EmmanuelMacron that any troops he sends to Ukraine would meet the same end as Napoleon Bonaparte's Grande Armee whose 1812 invasion of Russia ended in death and defeat.https://t.co/IZ26NzJTw4
— The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) February 28, 2024
During the conference, some of the smaller nations of NATO emphasized that NATO is a defensive alliance and they have reservations about sending troops to support a non-NATO country in an offensive capacity.