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Members of the French National Assembly adopted a resolution on strengthening support for Ukraine, including a call to seize frozen Russian assets, which the government opposes.

French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu, revealed after a meeting of Europe’s five key defence powers in Paris that a very broad consensus is emerging among European nations on boosting Ukraine’s long-term security through the Ukrainian armed forces.

The defence ministers of France, Britain, Germany, Italy and Poland addressed reporters after meeting for talks in Paris.

They acknowledged the challenges posed by the new administration of Donald Trump in the US, which is seeking direct talks with Russia to end the war sparked by the Russian 2022 invasion of Ukraine, while insisting Europe was ready to stand on its own feet.

Lecornu told reporters, ruling out any postwar “demilitarisation” of Ukraine, that there is obviously a very broad consensus emerging, stressing that the first of the security guarantees for Ukraine is obviously the Ukrainian army itself.

The top ally of President Emmanuel Macron, added that the real guarantee of long-term security will be the capabilities that would be given to the Ukrainian army, just as he expressed that about fifteen countries have shown interest in continuing the process, as he referred to proposed options for a security architecture with a view to a lasting ceasefire in Ukraine.

He therefore warned against seeing Ukraine’s post-war security solely in terms of European troops who could be deployed there, repeatedly insisting that this was not an issue to be decided on now.

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