BERLIN, February 29. /TASS/. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has ruled out the dispatch of German military and NATO troops to Ukraine.

"We will not allow an escalation of war, that is a war between Russia and NATO," Scholz said as he met with local residents in Dresden. "As I have just said again, and made clear from the very beginning: there will be no German military or NATO soldiers on Ukrainian soil, because otherwise it would entail such a danger," he emphasized. "And I remain committed to this," the chancellor added. The conversation was broadcast live on the government's website.

At the same time, Scholz emphasized that Germany provided Kiev with extensive support - financially, in humanitarian terms, as well as by supplying weapons. He reiterated that Germany was second in the world and first in Europe in terms of aid to Ukraine. This year, Germany will allocate more than 7 billion euros to support Kiev with arms supplies, he added. However, the chancellor once again opposed the supply of Taurus cruise missiles to Kiev.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on February 26 that at a meeting in Paris, where representatives of about 20 Western countries discussed further support for Ukraine in the conflict with Russia, the possibility of sending Western countries’ ground troops to Ukraine was raised. He remarked that no consensus was achieved, but such a scenario could not be ruled out in the future. After the conference, representatives of most of the participating countries said that they had no intention to send troops to Ukraine and were strongly opposed to their participation in military operations against Russia. On February 27, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne explained that the presence of Western military in Ukraine might be necessary to provide some types of assistance, including demining operations and instruction of Ukrainian soldiers, but that did not imply their participation in the conflict.

Macron’s statements about the possibility of sending European troops to Ukraine are dangerous, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

"As for Macron’s statements, it’s something new, which is far more dangerous," Peskov told Channel One television. "On the one hand, our Western partners are predictable but, on the other, unfortunately, they are beginning to discuss issues, such as the direct deployment of troops to Ukraine, which could cause irreparable damage to security and stability on the continent, leading to irreversible consequences," he added.

Peskov pointed out that the very fact that politicians in the West were discussing the issue "certainly makes it clear that the current generation of European politicians probably neither have a proper understanding of the word ‘security’ nor have a proper instinct of self-preservation." "This is fraught with unpredictability and absurd actions. It definitely requires that we remain alert," the Kremlin spokesman concluded.