Germany cannot stand aside from joint allied actions in Ukraine – Pistorius

Speaking at the Europe 2025 conference in Berlin on March 27, Pistorius emphasized Germany's responsibility as a leading European ally in NATO, Ukrinform reports.

"Germany is the biggest ally in Europe, in NATO, and the biggest economy in Europe. I cannot imagine any situation in which Germany would not be participating in whatever would be the result of negotiations for a ceasefire or even a peace," he said.

However, he noted that such a decision should be made when the time comes, considering various factors, including the mission's mandate, the participating countries, and the number of troops involved. According to Pistorius, these discussions should not be held publicly until a ceasefire is actually on the table.

"As military people used to say, we decide whether and how we cross a bridge when we are in front of the bridge and not a couple of miles before," he added.

Pistorius also expressed his desire to remain in his position but noted that future cabinet appointments -- where his party, the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), is expected to have representation -- have not yet been discussed.

Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur stressed the need to clarify the mandate for any potential deployment of troops. However, he also cautioned against the risks such a mission could pose.

"When our troops are there -- German, Estonian, French, British – then those troops are fixed there, and there will be a temptation for Russia to bind us there and then test us somewhere else," Pevkur said.

He stressed that NATO's eastern flank security must not be compromised.

Pevkur also reaffirmed that NATO membership remains the ideal security guarantee for Ukraine.

Responding to Pistorius' remark that Ukraine's NATO membership is "off the table" because of U.S.-Russia negotiations, Pevkur said: "It's off the table for the next four years. We never know what happened, you never know what happens because we saw how quickly everything changed basically in 60 days."

The Berlin conference coincided with a high-level meeting in Paris, where world leaders discussed further support for Ukraine and the strengthening of European defense.