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European NATO leaders must recognize that tens of thousands of troops will need to be deployed in Ukraine for the long term, Colonel André Wüstner, head of the German Armed Forces Association, told Reuters.
Wüstner, whose association represents over 200,000 active and retired military personnel, urged European leaders not to underestimate the military task and to speak honestly about the challenges, even if a quick ceasefire in Ukraine seems unlikely.
“It will not be enough for a few generals and small military units to occupy a command post in Ukraine. From the start, Putin must clearly understand that we take security guarantees seriously, and this must be backed by international forces. We take supporting Ukraine seriously, we take maintaining a ceasefire seriously, and we take seriously our response if Putin tries to attack Ukraine again,” Wüstner said.
He warned that a “bluff-and-pray” approach would be negligent and increase the risk of escalation.
Wüstner estimated that each major country in the “Coalition of the Willing,” such as the UK, France, and Germany, would need to deploy at least 10,000 troops in Ukraine for the long term, which would be a significant challenge for their already overstretched and under-equipped armed forces.
“Europe remains a military dwarf and can barely meet the new NATO commitments it took on at the last summit. Europe is still far from being able to defend itself independently,” Wüstner added.
Earlier, around ten countries expressed readiness to send troops to Ukraine as part of international security guarantees after hostilities end, including commitments from French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
