DISINFO: The ‘coalition of the willing’ shows the division inside the EU regd. Ukraine
SUMMARY
The ‘coalition of the willing’ shows the division inside the EU. The French-British proposal to deploy an interposition contingent in Ukraine after a ceasefire and a peace agreement didn’t get the necessary support. It is increasingly clear that there is a silent but fierce resistance from most European countries to continue the war.
RESPONSE
This is a distortion of facts, exploiting discrepancies regarding a British-French proposal to send a European peacekeeping force to Ukraine after the war.
This piece promotes several recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about the EU’s alleged lack of unity and about a supposed lack of support for Ukraine among European peoples against the stance of their elites.
This disinformation story is a direct reaction to British and French-led efforts to create a so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ to send troops to Ukraine after an eventual peace agreement to ensure its implementation. Russia has strongly attacked this proposal and therefore, pro-Kremlin disinformation outlets are also targeting it.
While it is true that several European countries have rejected the idea of sending troops to Ukraine and others have called this debate “premature”, this does not mean that the EU is “divided”. European meetings about Ukraine showed a remarkable degree of unity in support of this country, even if they did not reach a full agreement about deploying troops. Polls released a few days before this disinformation story appeared also show broad backing for continued support for Ukraine among Europeans.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that the French are getting discontent with providing funding for Ukraine, that the West is tired of Ukrainian conflict, that Bloomberg says that Ukraine's days are numbered and it's time to abandon it, and that European countries are starting to betray and disavow Ukraine.