Donald Trump may call on British troops to help enforce a buffer zone between Russia and Ukraine, it is claimed.
The incoming US President is reported to have told staffers that European troops should be tasked with patrolling an 800-mile stretch in order to end the war. It comes amid jitters that Trump may scale back support for Ukraine - pushing for a peace deal that is favourable to Vladimir Putin.
A member of his team told the Wall Street Journal: "We can do training and other support but the barrel of the gun is going to be European. We are not sending American men and women to uphold peace in Ukraine.
"And we are not paying for it. Get the Poles, Germans, British and French to do it.” Sources in the US said Trump is considering calling for the current frontline to be frozen and Ukraine agree not to try join NATO for 20 years.
He has previously bragged he could end the conflict in one day once he gets into the Oval Office. Russian warmonger Putin has welcomed Trump's election, saying his plan "deserves attention at least".
But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that appeasing Russia would be “suicide” for Europe. He said: “There should be no illusions that a just peace can be bought by showing weakness. Peace is a reward only for the strong.”
He said there had been "much talk about giving in to Putin, retreating, and making some 'concessions'". Mr Zelensky added: “This is unacceptable for Ukraine and suicide for all of Europe."
But former Tory Chancellor George Osborne questioned how long the UK could effectively back Ukraine if Trump turns his back. He said: “Is it realistic to expect a complete victory for Ukraine, the complete ejection of Russia from Ukrainian territory? And if it’s not, you know, it may suit our vanity in the West to say ‘plucky Ukrainians’, [but] it’s not our children who are dying.
“It’s also totally unrealistic, in my view, to think that Europe alone, including the UK, can go on supporting Ukraine without the support of the United States, even though Joe Biden actually is rushing to spend the $61 billion that Congress recently voted in terms of American aid for Ukraine before he leaves office.”
On Thursday Keir Starmer said allies must "step up" support for Ukraine. The PM told Mr Zelensky the UK had an "unwavering" commitment to help the country defend itself against Russia's invasion.
He added that the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia was "proof of Putin's increasing desperation" and that the UK would stand with Ukraine "for as long as it takes for Russia to withdraw".