The US has “no plans” to send troops to fight in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Tuesday, joining other Western nations in denying plans to send soldiers to the war-torn country.
“Well, just to be clear, we have no plans to send US service members to fight in Ukraine,” Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder said during a press briefing.
“The president has been pretty clear on that, and that continues to be our position,” Ryder added.
The comments on the matter came after French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this week said that sending Western troops to fight in Ukraine is “not ruled out” in the future.
At a gathering of European leaders in Paris, Macron said that while there was “no consensus” on sending troops to Ukraine, “nothing should be ruled out. We will do whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war.”
His comments drew reactions from European Union leaders, who were quick to clarify their intentions.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance’s support for Ukraine remains ongoing, but it has no plans to send combat troops to the ground.
Countries like Germany and Sweden also clarified that no such plans were on the table.
The US has been a staunch supporter of Kyiv in its fight against Russia as the conflict entered its third year this month, providing several aid packages throughout the war.
However, the future of US aid to Kyiv remains unclear as a $60 billion aid package remains held up in Congress.
“As it relates to providing assistance to Ukraine, you know, I can really only speak in broad terms from a DOD [Department of Defense] standpoint. As you know, since the beginning of Russia’s invasion, we have worked very hard to get security assistance to Ukraine as quickly as possible, and it’s not just a US effort; it’s an international effort,” Ryder said.
“There are literally people working around the clock to ensure that we can get aid as quickly as possible to Ukraine and meet their most urgent security needs,” he said, adding that the department will continue to work closely with Congress.
