Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky never asked foreign troops to fight for his country, a White House spokesman said Tuesday, responding to questions about French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments, AFP reported.

Pentagon spokesman John KirbyPhoto: Nicholas Kamm / AFP / Profimedia Images

“There will be no US troops in Ukraine. And you know what? This is not what President Zelensky is asking for. It requires tools and skills. He never asked for foreign troops to fight for his country,” said John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council.

In Prague on Tuesday, Emmanuel Macron said it was “necessary” to shake up Ukraine’s allies, urging them “not to be cowards” in the face of an “unstoppable” Russia.

The French president also said he “took responsibility” for his recent controversial remarks about the possibility of sending Western troops to the war-torn country.

“Is it our war or not our war? Can we avoid it, believe that everything can continue to happen? I don’t think so, and that’s why it’s a strategic leap that I called for and that I fully accept,” Macron said, adding that the “clarity” of his statements was what “Europe needs.”

“Russia must not win this war,” Macron insisted. But, he added, “we don’t want escalation, we have never been hostile.”

Berlin calls for calm

This warning was not accepted in Germany, where tensions around Ukraine have already arisen recently.

“We don’t need (…) discussions (…) about the presence of more or less courage,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius responded. “It doesn’t really help solve problems” in Ukraine.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius presented the first findings of the Bundeswehr on Tuesday into a secret conversation between his generals that fueled tensions with Moscow after it was intercepted by Russia, Reuters reported.

As for the introduction of troops, the vast majority of Western countries have already made it clear that they have no intention of doing so.

Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday “assumed” his call for a “strategic leap” with his previous statement, in which he mentioned the possibility of sending foreign troops to Ukraine and also warned against a “defeatist spirit” in the war with Russia, at a joint press conference in Prague conference with his Czech colleague Petr Pavel.

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