Britain to send troops to Poland next month to rehearse Ukraine peacekeeping as Trump refuses to blame Putin for war

At least 1,500 British, French and German troops are set to deploy to Poland next month for a major NATO exercise simulating post-war peacekeeping in Ukraine, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting announced during his inaugural Washington visit in the role. The drill will rehearse moving troops and logistical supplies — food, fuel and other essentials — into a post-conflict Ukraine to underpin security guarantees for Kyiv. The announcement came as Trump deepened a rift with European allies by declining to say whether Vladimir Putin started the war.

Streeting, who met Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, said Ukraine is 'the front line for freedom everywhere' and that European forces must be ready to 'support military training and post-war rebuilding.'

Trump also rejected the notion that the US had any part in cutting off Kyiv's access to Starlink satellite communications, leaving Ukraine exposed to Russian attack.

General Sir Roly Walker, chief of the general staff, separately told troops at Catterick Garrison that they would be needed as instability around the world keeps rising.