Europe was preparing a protective shield for Ukraine after the war, but Washington refuses to support the air cover needed for such an operation, Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the situation.
According to the report, European allies, after consultations with their American counterparts, concluded that President Donald Trump would not offer the guarantees they were seeking to back a Europe-led Coalition of the willing. This casts doubt on the feasibility of the initiative.
The US has declined to provide air defense assets to support the “deterrence forces” that the United Kingdom and France planned to deploy in postwar Ukraine.
The US’s unwillingness to provide the requested support highlights divisions among Western allies on how to respond to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
“European officials had said the US guarantee was needed alongside a strong Ukrainian force supported by allied training and troops, in order to deter Russia,” reads the report.
Earlier, the UK and France finalized plans for the deployment and operations of these forces but have paused implementation until ceasefire negotiations resume.
The allied forces, which were expected to help secure Ukraine’s airspace, coastline, and territory, stationing European troops far from the front lines at key ports and infrastructure sites, are dependent on a peace settlement that, in the view of European officials, is becoming increasingly unlikely.