French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that the sending of Western troops to Ukraine has not been "ruled out," a suggestion the Kremlin balked at Tuesday.
Speaking after a meeting of European heads of state and other Western officials in Paris — which touched on aid to Ukraine amid its pressing war needs — Macron said the possibility of sending ground troops to Ukraine was discussed.
"There is no consensus today to officially, openly, and with endorsement, send troops on the ground. But in terms of dynamics, nothing should be ruled out. We will do everything necessary to ensure that Russia cannot win this war," Macron said.
The president did not give any further details on which countries could consider sending troops but said France was "not against sending them."
The Kremlin balked at the suggestion Tuesday, with Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov telling reporters that if NATO member troops did fight in Ukraine than talk would have to change to the inevitability of a NATO-Russia conflict.
In other news, Hungary voted to approve Sweden's NATO accession bid on Monday, ending months of diplomatic negotiations and obstacles over the membership bid. It first applied to join the military alliance in May 2022 but had faced opposition from NATO members Hungary and Turkey.