Poland proposes establishment of NATO force in Ukraine

Poland has called for a NATO peacekeeping mission "protected by armed forces" to be sent to Ukraine to provide humanitarian and peaceful aid to the country, as Russia's military operation against its neighbor continues.

According to Press TV, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Poland's Deputy Prime Minister, who is considered the main strategist of government policy, made the plea during a visit to Ukraine on Tuesday, after he and the prime ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovenia arrived in the capital city of Kiev in a show of high-level support for the ex-Soviet country on behalf of the European Union.

"I think that we need a peacekeeping mission from NATO, or even possibly from a larger international structure, but a mission that will be able to defend itself and that will operate on Ukrainian territory, which will be in this country with the agreement of the president and the government of Ukraine and it will not be a defenseless mission," Kaczynski said.

"It will be a mission that will strive for peace, to provide humanitarian aid, but at the same time it will also be protected by appropriate forces, armed forces," he added.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki also called on the EU to "very quickly give Ukraine candidate status," adding, "We will try to organize defensive weapons."

The premiers of the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovenia, who traveled to Kiev by train on Tuesday, were the first foreign leaders to visit Ukraine since Russia's operation began last month. According to a statement posted on the Polish government's website, the purpose of the European leaders' visit is to "confirm the unequivocal support of the entire European Union for the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine and to present a broad package of support for the Ukrainian state and society."

The idea of the trip had been agreed at an EU leaders' summit in France last week.

The latest development comes as Russian forces are making advances toward the Ukrainian capital in an attempt to besiege the city, which has been put under curfew.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" in Ukraine on February 24. The conflict has provoked a unanimous response from Western countries, which have imposed a long list of sanctions on Moscow.

Russia says it will halt the military operation instantly if Kiev meets certain demands, including that Ukraine never join NATO.

ME