"NATO today is helping as much as it can. As much as it can. Without NATO's help, Ukraine would not have been able to defend itself for so long. Well, and there are some troops there, I mean soldiers. There are some soldiers there. Observers, engineers," Tusk told reporters.
The prime minister did not specify details on the number of troops or their countries of origin.
The alliance itself has repeatedly claimed it "only" sends aid to Ukraine, and some reports suggested that a “no boots on the ground” policy would be proposed at the upcoming July summit. However, the extent of Western military assistance to the Kiev regime is hard to overestimate — just the US has recently allocated $61 billion for Ukraine, despite growing realization that it will not help to stop Russia's advance.
According to CIA Director William Burns, without western help Ukraine will likely lose on the battlefield before the end of this year.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron’s suggestion that NATO may have to send troops to Ukraine to fight Russia got a cold reception across the EU, with multiple officials and politicians warning him that such a step would be catastrophic.