US troops must join peacekeeping mission, no one will risk it without US, Zelenskyy says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asserted that any effective peacekeeping forces for Ukraine must include U.S. troops, a message he directed at Donald Trump ahead of potential negotiations with Russia, Bloomberg reported.

Zelenskyy said that European allies lack sufficient soldiers to create a realistic deterrent against dictator Vladimir Putin and that any alternative approach risks sowing divisions within NATO.

"It [mission] can't be without the United States. Even if some European friends think it can be, no it can't be. No one will risk without the United States," the president emphasized.

Earlier, Zelenskyy stated that at least 200,000 European peacekeepers would be needed to prevent renewed Russian aggression following any ceasefire agreement.

In December, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources, that Trump wants European troops deployed in Ukraine to monitor a potential future ceasefire.