Paris, Berlin, London prepared to send troops to Ukraine, says French minister

Some European countries are ready to send troops to Ukraine to secure a ceasefire, but US support will be required, said French Finance Minister Eric Lombard in an interview with Bloomberg TV.

"We are starting a technical discussion. There is general agreement that to guarantee a ceasefire it will be necessary to [have] European troops in Ukraine. UK, Germany and France are already willing to do that, but other member states of the European Union will contribute as well," he said. "Those troops will arrive after the ceasefire in order to guarantee that the ceasefire is respected. But if we want the ceasefire to be respected, we need a US backup and I mean that Americans agreed to do that."

The minister did not elaborate on what Washington could do to ensure that the ceasefire is respected.