UK troops may need to protect peace in Ukraine for âmany yearsâ

A former national security adviser has warned the potential deployment of UK troops to protect peace in Ukraine could last for âmany yearsâ.
Lord Sedwill told the BBCâs The Week in Westminster that the UK would need to be âwilling to display strategic patience to give the Ukrainians the [security] assurances they needâ in the event of a peace deal.
Both the UK and France have said they would be willing to send troops to work to uphold any ceasefire in Russiaâs war with Ukraine.
They would form part of a âcoalition of the willingâ to help Kyiv which the UK said could involve around 20 other countries. Not all would necessarily send troops but could provide other support.
The plan, spearheaded by the UK and France, was set out at a summit hosted by the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer last weekend.
No information was provided on which countries had shown an interest in offering support or what that support could specifically involve, but the group is believed to consist of European and Commonwealth countries.
Lord Sedwill said if Russia believed it could just âwait us outâ while UK troops were deployed in Ukraine, then any effort to protect a peace deal would not succeed.
âSo we have to be willing to sustain such an effort for potentially quite a long period, could be many years,â he added.
It comes as concerns mount over US President Donald Trumpâs approach to the conflict, after he paused military aid to Ukraine, as well as intelligence sharing and access to satellite imagery in an apparent bid to bring Ukraineâs President Zelensky to the negotiating table.
Russian officials have rejected the idea of peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, with foreign minister Sergei Lavrov previously saying such a move âcanât be allowedâ as it would amount to the âdirect, official and unveiled involvement of Nato members in the war against Russiaâ.
On Friday, Russian MP and TV presenter Yevgeny Popov told BBC Newsnight that the prospect of UK soldiers in Ukraine was âunacceptableâ and warned that âBritish troops will be direct targets for our missiles, you will get coffins in returnâ.
In recent weeks, European leaders have committed to bolstering defence and increase military spending.
At a summit in Brussels on Thursday, EU leaders backed plans to jointly borrow âŹ150bn to lend to EU governments to boost military capabilities.
Sir Keir welcomed the âhistoricâ move as âanother sign of Europe stepping upâ.
A meeting set to take place in Paris next week would be an âimportant moment to drive forward planningâ, Downing Street said.
The UK also said it would work with French President Emmanuel Macron, alongside President Zelensky, to draw up a peace plan to present to Trump.
Lord Sedwill, who was cabinet secretary under Theresa May and Boris Johnson, said it was a moment âfor a resetâ of Nato with European nations showing that they are âwilling to step up and share the burdenâ.
He added that Nato âis in pretty good healthâ, particularly with the recent addition of Finland and Sweden, âtwo really significant military powersâ.
Rose Gottemoeller, deputy secretary general of Nato during Trumpâs first term, said she was âadmiringâ of Europeâs recent response in supporting Kyiv.
âThey are really taking a lot of responsibility for moving forward in their own defence as well as the defence of Ukraine,â she told BBC Radio 4âs Today programme on Saturday.
If Europe can step up, Lord Sedwill added, âthen we can convince the Americans that this remains an institution which actually helps protect their security as well as European security and thus to remain invested in itâ.
Former Conservative defence secretary Ben Wallace said that it would not be âthe end of the worldâ if the US pulled out of Nato and that Europe should be looking at how it can replace satellite imagery and other technology pulled from Ukraine by the US.
âWe have the will in Europe and the money if we choose to fix our own security and defence,â he told the Today programme.
Many Western leaders have said that it would only be possible to uphold a lasting peace in Ukraine with the help of the US.
Sir Keir previously said that a plan for defence should be made âin conjunction with the United States⊠itâs that ability to work with the United States and our European partners that has kept the peace for 80 years nowâ.
Trump has so far avoided committing to such support, and has suggested that the presence of US workers in Ukraine as part of a potential minerals deal could act as a security guarantee.