PARIS/KYIV/BERLIN/ZAGREB/BERLIN/MOSCOW - A coalition of about 30 Western and European countries agreed Tuesday at a meeting in Paris that any future peace settlement must include robust and binding security guarantees for Ukraine.
A summit of the Coalition of the Willing brought together leaders of several European countries, as well as White House special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law.
In a joint declaration, the coalition said they remain committed to a just and lasting peace in Ukraine in line with the principles of the United Nations Charter, and welcomed progress in recent talks among the United States, Ukraine and European partners.
They stressed that Ukraine's ability to defend itself is critical to its future security and to broader Euro-Atlantic stability, and confirmed that safeguarding Ukraine's sovereignty and long-term security will be an integral part of any peace agreement.
According to the declaration, the coalition stands ready to put in place a system of politically and legally binding guarantees once a ceasefire takes effect. This will include participation in a US-led ceasefire monitoring mechanism, military support for Ukraine and long-term defense cooperation.
Multinational forces deployment
Also on Tuesday, Ukraine, France and the United Kingdom signed a Declaration of Intent on the deployment of multinational forces to support Ukraine's defense, reconstruction, and strategic resilience after a peace agreement is achieved, the Ukrinform news agency reported.
The document was signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, following a summit of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris.
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Zelensky noted that there is already a detailed understanding of the architecture of security guarantees for Ukraine.
For his part, Starmer said the declaration creates a legal basis for operations of partner countries' troops on Ukrainian territory if a peace agreement is achieved.
Possibility of stationing German troops inside Ukraine
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed the country's readiness to provide military support for monitoring a potential ceasefire in Ukraine, according to the website of German magazine Der Spiegel.
Speaking during a meeting of Western and European countries to support Ukraine in Paris, Merz stated that the German armed forces could be deployed to Ukraine's neighboring NATO territory to safeguard a truce.
He emphasized that the nature and scale of Germany's contribution would be decided by the federal government and the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, once specific conditions are met.
Croatia not to send soldiers to Ukraine
On the other hand, Croatia will not send soldiers to the Ukrainian territory, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said in a statement.
"Some will participate (in the Coalition of the Willing) with their forces, and some other countries, like Croatia, will not send their soldiers to Ukrainian territory. We will continue to support Ukraine through political and diplomatic efforts or bilateral military assistance packages," the statement said.
"It is important to achieve a just, lasting and sustainable peace (in Ukraine)," the statement added.
Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has repeatedly voiced his opposition to sending Croatian soldiers to Ukraine.
Fifty-six Russian civilians killed in December
Separately, 56 Russian civilians were killed in December 2025 by attacks launched by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, while 311 others were injured, said Rodion Miroshnik, the Russian Foreign Ministry's ambassador-at-large.
The figures for both the wounded and the dead rose compared with November, when 300 injuries and 38 fatalities were recorded, Miroshnik said on Telegram.
Russia's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that its air defense systems shot down 360 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, two aerial bombs and two US-made HIMARS rockets in the special military operation zone over the past 24 hours.
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According to the ministry, the country's forces also struck storage facilities for long-range drones and hit temporary deployment points for Ukrainian armed formations across 158 locations.
