PARIS, November 25. /TASS/. The measures being prepared by the so-called Coalition of the Willing can only be implemented after a ceasefire is reached or a peace treaty is signed, French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin said at a press conference in Warsaw following talks with her Polish counterpart, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz.
"What the Coalition of the Willing is preparing now can only be implemented if a ceasefire or peace plan is announced," she said, adding, however, that "the situation is still a long way from that."
Vautrin did not specify which measures she had in mind. According to her, "the main idea behind the Coalition of the Willing is, first and foremost, to rebuild the Ukrainian army so that it can ensure compliance with the peace treaty that will be signed."
Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron said on RTL radio that the Coalition of the Willing intends to deploy its forces "on the second line, away from the front" once the conflict ends. According to him, deployment "at reserve sites in Kiev and Odessa" could be among the options.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has previously said that most European capitals now form the backbone of the Coalition, which, in his view, seeks only one thing: for the fighting to continue "until the last Ukrainian." He also stated that Russia would not allow NATO countries to deploy troops in Ukraine under any circumstances, arguing that the presence of alliance forces on Ukrainian territory would pose a threat to Russia.