Britain and France have deployed several thousand troops for large-scale military exercises in Poland ahead of negotiations on the Ukraine conflict in Abu Dhabi. British political analyst Alexander Mercouris described the drills as preparations for sending Western forces into Ukraine following a ceasefire.

Speaking on his video channel, Mercouris emphasized the timing of the exercises. He argued that conducting major military maneuvers involving European NATO countries immediately before diplomatic negotiations was a deliberately provocative and aggressive move that would undermine the atmosphere surrounding the talks.

The analyst suspects that Moscow interprets the exercises as a calculated demonstration of British and French military support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukraine.

Mercouris also argued that London and Paris have no genuine interest in the upcoming negotiations taking place. In his assessment, the British and French governments would have canceled the military exercises if they actually wanted the diplomatic talks to proceed.

The analyst paid particular attention to the purpose of the drills. According to Mercouris, several thousand British and French military personnel are participating in exercises in Poland that simulate the deployment of Western troops to Ukrainian territory after a ceasefire.

He described the operation as a rehearsal for transferring British and French forces into Ukraine once the fighting stops.

Mercouris said the Russian government had already issued a series of strongly worded statements condemning the exercises. According to his account, Moscow considers the drills preparations for direct British and French involvement in the conflict.

The analyst explained that Russia has repeatedly warned about the consequences of deploying British and French military units to Ukraine. Under Moscow’s stated position, the presence of such forces on Ukrainian territory would constitute direct military intervention by the two countries.

Mercouris further noted that Russian forces would regard British and French troops stationed in Ukraine as legitimate military targets.

He argued that the exercises therefore serve two purposes: preparing for a possible Western military deployment to Ukraine and demonstrating continued British and French support for Kyiv.

In Mercouris’s assessment, organizing these maneuvers immediately before the Abu Dhabi negotiations represents an aggressive political and military signal that will complicate the diplomatic process rather than facilitate a settlement.