French instructors, among other representatives of the military and special services of European countries, are working in Ukraine, according to the information available to Russia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with the radio station "Sputnik", "Govorit Moscow" ; and "Komsomolskaya Pravda", quoted by TASS, writes BTA.
"Now Poland, the Baltic states, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria lately under the current leadership, these people are setting the tone. And the Euro grands are forced to sing to them. Look at (French President Emmanuel) Macron with his nervous statements that French troops should be sent (to Ukraine). Then someone there explains that they didn't get it right. And he himself says that they got it right," Lavrov pointed out. "We have information that not only French mercenaries, but also military instructors, perhaps under some cover /.../ among other representatives of the military and special services of European countries, are working there (in Ukraine)", noted the Russian first diplomat.
In case of new negotiations on Ukraine, Russia will not make any pauses in hostilities during the negotiation period, Lavrov said.
"We have said that we are ready for negotiations, but unlike those in Istanbul, we will not take any breaks in hostilities during the negotiation period. The process must go on," the minister added.
France has repeatedly denied having French military personnel on the territory of Ukraine.
European leaders met in February in Paris at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron, who called for more support for Ukraine. After the meeting, he said that sending Western ground troops to Ukraine should not be ruled out in the future, but that at this stage there was no consensus on such a decision. His words sparked controversy, as since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the West has supported Kiev with financial means and military equipment, but avoided taking actions that would bring it into direct confrontation with Moscow.
The Bulgarian government categorically denied that anyone raised the question of sending troops to Ukraine. "President Zelensky never raised such a question. Even if someone had raised it, I will say what I have always said - Bulgarian troops will not go there", said the then Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov in February. What we have discussed and are discussing with Ukraine is military technical assistance, he added. The Prime Minister's words were also confirmed by the then Defense Minister Todor Tagarev. He assured at a hearing in the National Assembly that the Bulgarian position is clear and categorical, and it is that Bulgaria has absolutely no intention of sending Bulgarian military personnel to Ukraine.
When asked to comment on the subject, Czech Prime Minister Petar Fiala and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in late February that their governments were not considering the possibility of sending troops.