Overview
- After a Paris meeting of a "coalition of the willing," Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany will support security guarantees for Ukraine politically, financially and militarily once a ceasefire is in place.
- Merz indicated the military contribution could include stationing German forces on NATO territory adjacent to Ukraine, with details still to be defined by the government and parliament.
- Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has characterized potential German participation in a multinational force as hypothetical so far.
- Bavarian premier and CSU leader Markus Zöder said any German troop deployment should come only after a ceasefire and after military‑age Ukrainian refugees in Germany return to Ukraine.
- Zöder rejected the use of conscripts for any mission, and Russian officials reiterated that Western troop deployments on Ukrainian soil would be unacceptable and risk sharp escalation.