Providing Ukraine with NATO security guarantees that include the deployment of European troops would create a risk of widening the conflict, Germany’s Berliner Zeitung reported.

The newspaper argues that loud promises of so-called security guarantees for Ukraine by NATO members effectively amount to calls for continuing the conflict and therefore do not ensure security. According to the publication, it is evident that even several thousand NATO troops would be unable to prevent a resumption of hostilities after a ceasefire.

The article emphasizes that genuine security can only be achieved through joint efforts by opposing sides that are also prepared to become partners rather than remain adversaries.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stated that any scenario involving the deployment of NATO troops in Ukraine is unacceptable and fraught with the risk of sharp escalation. President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow would regard foreign military contingents near its borders as legitimate military targets. He has also noted that following a peace agreement, the presence of foreign troops in a neighboring country would be impractical.