It will be 'premature' to commit troops deployment in Ukraine: Slovakian president

The Slovakian president on Thursday did not rule out the deployment of troops in Ukraine but said it would be "premature" to make any commitment as uncertainty about the guarantees to ensure the sustainability of such a measure remained.

"It is premature to suggest that some European armies or soldiers from countries in which I am interested should be stationed in Ukraine," said President Peter Pellegrini at a joint news conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Slovak capital of Bratislava.

He emphasized that the necessary conditions must be met first and that there is still some uncertainty about the guarantees that will ensure the sustainability of such a measure.

"It is not in the Slovak Republic's best interests to reach an agreement for a limited time, regroup its resources, and make the country more stable, only to witness the ongoing military conflict in a few years," Pellegrini said.

He also emphasized the importance of reaching a settlement given their proximity to the Ukrainian border, reaffirming Slovakia's role in the search for a "long-term, sustainable solution."

Leaders from several major European countries met in Paris on Monday at French President Emmanuel Macron's invitation to discuss transatlantic relations, the situation in Ukraine, potential peace talks, and European security.

US-European relations have grown tense after President Donald Trump initiated direct discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin about Ukraine peace talks, excluding European leaders.

At the Munich Security Conference over the weekend, Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for Russia and Ukraine, confirmed that Europeans would not be invited to planned US-Russia talks on Ukraine peace.

Adding to the tension, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggested that European nations, rather than the US, should provide peacekeeping troops to Ukraine. He emphasized that any such deployment should be non-NATO and would not be covered under Article 5 of NATO's collective defense clause, stressing that US troops would not be involved in any security guarantees.