Russia’s former president and the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said that sending NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) “peacekeepers” to Ukraine would mean war. The idea, floated by the United Kingdom and France, is to use NATO troops against Russia.

In a post on X on Sunday, Medvedev, who currently serves as the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, stated that French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer “are playing dumb.”

Macron and Starmer are playing dumb. Time and again they are told that peacekeepers must be from non-NATO states. No, we will send tens of thousands – just lay it out – you want to give military aid to the neo-Nazis in Kiev. That means war with NATO. Consult with Trump, scumbags.

— Dmitry Medvedev (@MedvedevRussiaE) March 16, 2025

“Time and again they are told that peacekeepers must be from non-NATO states. No, we will send tens of thousands – just lay it out – you want to give military aid to the neo-Nazis in Kiev,” Medvedev charged. “That means war with NATO. Consult with [US President Donald] Trump, scumbags,” he concluded.

Panicked Zelensky Offers To Resume Peace Talks After Trump Cuts Aid

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously similarly argued that the deployment of NATO military personnel to Ukraine, even under the guise of peacekeepers, would be tantamount to the “direct, official, undisguised involvement of NATO countries in the war against Russia.”

Earlier this month, Starmer announced that Britain and France were ready to lead a “coalition of the willing” to provide military support to Kiev, including the deployment of troops and aircraft. Speaking following an emergency summit in London, he said that “not every nation will feel able to contribute, but that can’t mean that we sit back. Instead, those willing will intensify planning now with real urgency.”

This is not the first time the West has floated the idea of sending troops to Ukraine, and it isn’t the first time Russia threatened to ignite World War Three over it.

Russia Accuses France Of Getting Ready To Deploy Troops To Ukraine