Don’t be afraid of Putin’s threats
EU country is ready to send soldiers to Ukraine
May 8, 2024, 11:05 a.m
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With his thoughts on ground troops in Ukraine, French President Macron is sparking a debate. Lithuania has long been considering sending soldiers – for training purposes. Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė now confirms this. She reacts calmly to Moscow’s threats.
Lithuania is ready to send its soldiers on a training mission to Ukraine. Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė told the Financial Times. She has parliamentary permission to send troops to Ukraine for training purposes, said Šimonytė. Her government had considered this before, but Kiev had not yet asked for it.
So far, Ukraine has expressed itself rather negatively towards troops from the West. For example, the mayor of Kiev, Wladimir Klitschko, said on the “Maischberger” program that there was no need for NATO soldiers. However, it is unclear to what extent such an attitude is likely to continue if the front actually collapses, which many experts consider to be not unrealistic given the current situation.
If Lithuania were to actually send soldiers to Ukraine – even if only for training purposes – this would likely result in a sharp reaction from Moscow. The Kremlin recently announced a nuclear exercise in Ukraine, among other things because of Western ideas about ground troops. It is very likely that Russia would consider Lithuanian soldiers as a target and attack them too.
Prime Minister Šimonytė acknowledged to the Financial Times that Moscow would view a training mission on Ukrainian territory as a provocation, but said: “If we only thought about the Russian reaction, we wouldn’t be able to send anything. Every other week you hear that someone is shot down atomically.”
Lithuania: Russia would be affected by fallout
Šimonytė doubts that Russia would actually use nuclear weapons since it would itself be affected by the fallout. “Most of the time the wind blows from west to east.” The Institute for War Studies (ISW) also recently stated that its assessment of the situation is that “it is highly unlikely that Russia will use a tactical nuclear weapon on the battlefield in Ukraine or elsewhere.”
Discussions about Western troops in Ukraine have gained momentum, especially since a move by French President Macron. He had repeatedly brought up such an approach as a deterrent if the front collapsed and asked Ukraine to do so. There was a clear rejection of Paris from countries like Hungary and Germany.
But even if Macron has received little public support for his idea from his allies, there are voices that do not rule out sending ground troops. U.S. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said in an interview with CBS News about a possible collapse of the front: “We can’t let Ukraine fall because if that happens, there’s a strong possibility that the United States will States must enter the conflict – not only with our money, but also with our soldiers.”
Russia has been waging a full-scale invasion of Ukraine for over two years. Many observers assume that leading Kremlin politicians aim to fully or partially restore the borders of the old Soviet Union. The Baltic states of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia in particular fear that they will suffer the same fate as Ukraine and that an attack by Russian troops is imminent. However, as part of the EU and NATO, this would result in intervention by allies.