Zelenskyy says Russia-Ukraine ceasefire deal would require 200,000 peacekeepers

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that at least 200,000 European peacekeepers would be needed to prevent Russia from launching another attack after any ceasefire agreement is reached. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, he called on European leaders to take more action to defend the continent. This comes a day after Donald Trump returned to the US presidential race after repeatedly promising to quickly end the war in Ukraine.

The prospect of a swift resolution to the conflict has focused Kyiv and Europe on the urgent need for security guarantees to prevent any future Russian attacks, and the idea of a peacekeeping force is circulating. Asked about the idea of a peacekeeping force in an interview after his speech, Zelenskyy said, "From all Europeans? 200,000, that's the minimum. That's the minimum, otherwise it's all for nothing."

This number is roughly equivalent to the size of the entire French armed forces, which the French Ministry of Defense estimated to be just over 200,000 in 2020. Zelenskyy stated that if the total number of Russian armed forces reaches 1.5 million, while Ukraine has only half that number, then at least this size of peacekeeping force is needed as a security guarantee. He also emphasized that such a force is only part of the security guarantees Ukraine needs.

Regarding a meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy said that Kyiv is working to arrange a meeting between him and Trump. "Both teams have been preparing for the meeting, and it is currently underway," Zelenskyy said of these efforts. After returning to the White House on Monday, Trump said he would quickly end the war in Ukraine but did not specify how. Zelenskyy said Ukraine would not agree to Russia's demand to drastically reduce the size of its army. He predicted that Russian President Vladimir Putin would ask Ukraine to reduce its armed forces to one-fifth of their original size. "That's what he wants. We will not allow that to happen," Zelenskyy said.

In his speech, Zelenskyy stated that Europe must become a strong global player capable of guaranteeing peace and security for itself and others. He suggested that Europe's influence in Washington has waned because the US believes its allies are not contributing enough to security. "Are there people in the United States who worry that Europe might one day abandon them and no longer be their ally? The answer is no," Zelenskyy said. He said that Europeans need to develop a unified security and defense policy, and alluded to Trump's pre-inauguration remarks proposing to significantly increase NATO members' defense spending to 5% of GDP. Zelenskyy said: "If it takes 5% of GDP to pay for defense, then so be it, 5% is 5%. There is no need to play with people's emotions, thinking that defense should be compensated at the expense of medical care or pensions – that's not fair."