| Forget Western ‘troops on the ground’ in Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron had a much more important message to deliver this week. Monday’s meeting of more than 20 European leaders in Paris, meant as a show of European unity and force, ended up highlighting Europe’s limitations when it came to supporting Ukraine, with Western allies quick to distance themselves from the idea. After Macron said that deployment of Western troops in Ukraine should not be ultimately “ruled out”, French officials rushed to clarify that only non-combatant roles would be under consideration in any case. This could be done within the framework of five priorities defined during the conference: de-mining, cyber defence, defence of Moldova, protection of the borders with Belarus, and the co-production of weapons in Ukraine. Still, a range of analysts agree Macron’s comments did not come out of the blue and may have very well been testing the waters for how it could be possible to support Ukrainian troops in the future, though most likely away from the frontlines. Besides, as one Western military official pointed out, according to intelligence reports, the UK already has a bunch of special forces in Ukraine in an advisory function. It is said to be one of the reasons London has led on tanks, long-range missiles and other weapons deliveries, having been told by its people about the needs and shortcomings they see up close on the ground. | 