Albanese says Australian government now ‘open to consideration’ of sending troops to Ukraine

Australia’s prime minister says his government will consider any proposal to send troops to Ukraine as part of a multinational peacekeeping force, as Europe considers a “coalition of the willing” to enforce any peace deal.

An official told the Washington Post the US was “pausing and reviewing” aid to ensure it was contributing to brokering a peace to the long-running war. Other government agencies stressed it was a temporary pause, not a permanent cessation of assistance.

European nations, led by Britain and France, are attempting to draw up a peace plan they hope will be backed by a US security guarantee. Moscow has consistently said it would oppose any European troops on the ground.

Asked at a Sydney press conference on Tuesday about the US’s halt on military aid, Anthony Albanese reiterated Australia’s support for Ukraine, which has endured more than 10 years of war with an irredentist Russian Federation and more than three since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

He said he was “open to consideration” of a proposal to put Australian boots on the ground. Albanese stressed that there was no concrete proposal on the table, nor had Australia been asked to contribute troops. The prime minister’s comments on Tuesday were the most assertive from Australia so far on the potential commitment of troops.