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Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor candidate and leader of the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU), stated that Germany could consider participating in peacekeeping missions in Ukraine only if a consensus is reached with Russia.
This was reported by Die Zeit.
Merz emphasized that Germany’s involvement in peacekeeping operations would require a mandate in accordance with international law. However, he highlighted that Russia’s consent is a crucial factor, as missions without it would not be effective and could escalate tensions.
“If a peace agreement is reached and Ukraine requires security guarantees, we can discuss this only if there is a clear mandate in line with international law. At the moment, I do not see one. I would like such a mandate to be established with Russia’s consensus, not in conflict,” Merz said.
Context:
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi told the media on December 20 that several countries are considering participating in a potential Western peacekeeping contingent in Ukraine, as proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron. However, discussions on this topic are still in the early stages.
Tykhyi noted that Ukraine is actively participating in these discussions and that the principle of “nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine” remains intact.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged that the idea of deploying a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine as a safeguard against further Russian aggression was discussed during meetings in Brussels. He also mentioned seeing “positive signals” from some leaders regarding this proposal.
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