Ukraine agrees to US, European truce plan calling for western troops if Russia invades again

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo via French Army

Ukraine has agreed with Western partners that any persistent Russian violations of a future ceasefire agreement would trigger a co-ordinated military response from Europe and the U.S., the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people briefed on the discussions.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

The plan was discussed on several occasions in December and January between Ukrainian, European and American officials and would involve a multi-tiered response to any breaches of an agreed armistice by Russia, the report said.

Envoys from Kyiv, Moscow and Washington will meet in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday and Thursday for talks aimed at ending the war, FT said.

As per the proposal, any Russian breach of a ceasefire  would prompt a response within 24 hours, starting with a diplomatic warning and, if necessary, action by Ukrainian army to halt the infraction, the newspaper said.

If hostilities continued beyond that, the proposal would move to a second phase of intervention using forces from the so-called coalition of the willing, which includes many EU members and the UK, Norway, Iceland and Turkey, the report said.

The report added that in the case of an expanded attack, a coordinated response by a Western-backed force, incorporating the U.S. military would be triggered 72 hours after the initial breach.

 (Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Michael Perry // REUTERS)