Trump Vows No Troops In Ukraine; Starmer Says Talks Of UK Deploying Soldiers ‘Premature’

Last Updated:August 19, 2025, 21:13 IST

President Trump assured no US soldiers will be sent to Ukraine, urging European allies like France, Germany, and the UK to provide security. Starmer said it's too early to commit.

US President Donald Trump talks with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer next to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as they walk during a meeting, amid negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (IMAGE: REUTERS)

US President Donald Trump said Washington will not deploy soldiers to Ukraine as part of any potential security guarantees for Kyiv, putting the responsibility on European allies.

“You have my assurance and I’m President," Trump told US broadcaster Fox News on Tuesday, hours after his meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders. “There’ll be some kind of security. It can’t be NATO. But there will be no boots on the ground."

The US President added that France, Germany and the UK were willing to “frontload" security guarantees, which could include deploying their own troops. “We’ve got the European nations, they’ll frontload it… they want to have boots on the ground," he said.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, however, said it was too early to say whether the UK would commit troops. “It’s premature to determine that at this stage," Starmer told UK broadcaster Sky News, while stressing that the UK will “play our part."

Trump’s comments followed a high-level meeting in Washington on August 18 with Zelenskyy and European allies to discuss security assurances for Ukraine. After the meeting, Trump said on Truth Social that he had also spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin to begin arrangements for a potential meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy. He said the talks marked “a very good, early step for a war that has been going on for almost four years."

Pressed on whether Americans could be assured that US troops would not patrol Ukraine’s front line, Trump repeated: “You have my assurance… I’m just trying to stop people from being killed."

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who also attended the Washington talks, said the issue of sending US or European troops was not discussed during the meeting. “That will be part of discussions which will now start," he told Fox News, adding that efforts are underway to reach the “next stage of understanding" on security guarantees.

Shankhyaneel Sarkar

Shankhyaneel Sarkar is a senior subeditor at News18. He covers international affairs, where he focuses on breaking news to in-depth analyses. He has over five years of experience during which he has covered sev...Read More

Shankhyaneel Sarkar is a senior subeditor at News18. He covers international affairs, where he focuses on breaking news to in-depth analyses. He has over five years of experience during which he has covered sev...

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First Published:

August 19, 2025, 21:13 IST

News world Trump Vows No Troops In Ukraine; Starmer Says Talks Of UK Deploying Soldiers ‘Premature’

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