Russia again blasts notion of Western troops in Ukraine ahead of Trump call with Zelenskyy, European leaders

Russia once again rejected the idea of foreign troops being stationed in Ukraine. This comes as European leaders met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and held a joint call with President Donald Trump.

On Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said any plan to have foreign military personnel deployed to Ukraine would be “unacceptable” to Moscow, Reuters reported. 

“Russia is not going to discuss a foreign intervention in Ukraine in any form or format that is fundamentally unacceptable and undermines any security,” Zakharova told reporters, according to Reuters.

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The statement was in response to remarks by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen about plans to send European troops to Ukraine.

Russia is not alone in rejecting von der Leyen’s remarks, as Germany also expressed doubt about the proposal. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters that there are “things that you don’t discuss before you sit down at the negotiating table with many parties that have a say in the matter.”

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While the call occurred Thursday morning, the White House did not release any public statement on what was discussed or whether there was any progress made toward ending the war. However, Zelenskyy seemed to think it went well as he thanked Trump in a post about the meeting on X.

“I would like to give special thanks to President Trump for all his efforts to end this war and for America’s readiness to provide support to Ukraine on its part,” Zelenskyy wrote.

The Ukrainian president said that in the meeting, which included U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, the world leaders discussed how each country would be ready to contribute to ensuring Kyiv’s security.

“We share the same view that Russia is making every effort to drag out the negotiation process and prolong the war. Support for Ukraine must be increased and pressure on Russia must be intensified,” Zelenskyy said.

World leaders have pushed for an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, which has raged for more than three years since Moscow’s February 2022 invasion.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House seeking comment on the call but did not immediately hear back.