Trump Assures No US Boots on the Ground as Part of Ukraine Security Guarantees

There will be no U.S. boots on the ground in Ukraine to enforce an eventual armistice between Kyiv and Moscow, President Donald Trump assured Americans on Aug. 19.

Calling in for an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, Trump recounted his multilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders as part of his ongoing efforts to put a stop to the fighting between Russia and Ukraine.

Zelenskyy has repeatedly asked Ukraine’s base of international supporters for security assurances as part of an eventual peace process to end the war. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has staunchly opposed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) extending membership to Ukraine and expanding the alliance’s presence along Russia’s Black Sea border.

During his meetings with European leaders on Monday, Trump said Ukrainian membership in NATO was off the table but that there could be a “NATO-like” multinational force to provide Ukraine with some security assurances.

Trump elaborated on his NATO stance while speaking with “Fox & Friends” on Tuesday.

“[Ukraine is] not going to be a part of NATO, but we’ve got the European nations, and they’ll front-load it, and they’ll have some of them: France and Germany, a couple of them, UK—they want to have, you know, boots on the ground,” he said.

As the discussion continued, Fox News host Charlie Hurt asked Trump directly to confirm there will be no U.S. troops involved in this potential security umbrella for Ukraine.

“Well, you have my assurance, and I’m president,” Trump replied.

As the discussion expanded to broader regional security in Europe, Trump credited those European leaders willing to commit troops from their countries to support Ukraine. He said those European countries are “willing to put people on the ground” and “we’re willing to help them with things, especially, probably, if you talk about by air, because there’s nobody who has the kind of stuff we have.”

Trump then predicted that the fighting in Ukraine is unlikely to flare back up once a peace deal is in place.

“I think if a deal is made—you know, famous last words, right?—but I think if a deal is made … I think Russia’s had it, they’ve all had it, and for a very extended period of time, I don’t think there’ll be a problem,” Trump said.

Other security assurances for Ukraine may come in the form of renewed military aid shipments.

In a press conference following his meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy said he had proposed purchasing $90 billion worth of additional weapons from the United States.

Land Swaps for Peace

Details are still emerging about the Russia–Ukraine peace proposal Trump has in mind, but he has repeatedly hinted at land swaps and territorial cessions to settle the current battle lines.

Along with annexing the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, Russia has managed to capture virtually all of the Luhansk province and the majority of three other Ukrainian provinces: Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. In all, Russia’s holdings cover about 20 percent of Ukraine’s pre-2014 territory, primarily along Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region and Azov coastline.

Zelenskyy has pushed back on talk of ceding Ukrainian territorial claims. At an Aug. 17 press conference ahead of his White House visit, Zelenskyy said, “The Constitution of Ukraine makes it impossible to give up territory or trade land.”

During his Tuesday Fox News interview, Trump faced further questions as to whether he discussed land swaps with Zelenskyy and the other European leaders, and how those European leaders reacted.

“Well, they understand,” Trump said.

“Look, everybody can play cute, and this and that, but Ukraine is going to get their life back. They’re going to stop having people killed all over the place, and they’re going to get a lot of land. But this was a war, and Russia is a powerful military nation. You know, whether people like it or not, it’s a powerful nation. It’s a much bigger nation.”

The U.S. president credited Ukrainian soldiers with fighting bravely throughout the war, but said that they haven’t been able to halt the Russian advance.

Next Steps With Putin

A recurring focus of the Monday White House meetings was on how to set up an eventual trilateral meeting between the leaders of Russia and Ukraine mediated by the United States.

Trump announced that he called Putin on Monday to begin working out the details for this meeting.

Discussing the call on Fox News, Trump said he chose not to call Putin while the other European leaders were present.

“I didn’t do it in front of them. I thought that would be disrespectful to President Putin. I wouldn’t do that because they have not had the warmest relations,” Trump told Fox News.

Because of the difference in time zones, Trump said it was around 1 a.m. in Moscow when he got on the phone with the Russian president.

“It was, like, one o’clock in the morning. But [Putin] picked it up very happily,” Trump said.

The U.S. president expressed hopes for a successful trilateral meeting and an end to the conflict, but said his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts must also show the will to get to a deal.

“It takes, in this case, two to tango,” he said.