It is “highly unlikely” Britain or its allies will send troops to defend Ukraine if it is invaded by neighbouring Russia, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has said. US intelligence claims Russia has stationed about 70,000 troops near the border of Ukraine and has begun planning for a possible invasion as soon as early next year. Mr Wallace and Ukrainian defence minister Oleksii Yuriyovych Reznikov issued a joint statement on November 16 which said they were “concerned” by Russia’s military build-up. But in an interview with The Spectator, Mr Wallace said Ukraine “is not a member of Nato so it is highly unlikely that anyone is going to send troops into Ukraine to challenge Russia”. The two countries have been at odds since 2014 when Russian forces annexed the Crimean peninsula and backed a separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine.

Source: The Times December 18, 2021 06:58 UTC