Pentagon blames need for NATO peacekeeping force on Russia

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The United States was aware that Poland was going to make a proposal on a NATO peacekeeping force, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby told Al Mayadeen during a press briefing on Tuesday. 

"I am aware that Poland was going to make this proposal [on a NATO peacekeeping force] today. I think that's a discussion for NATO leaders to talk about later in the week. I am not going to get into that," John Kirby told Al Mayadeen's correspondent in response to a question on the matter.

Kirby went on to cast the blame on Russia for the alliance needing such a force, to begin with, while asserting the need for a peacekeeping force.

"There shouldn't be a need for a peacekeeping force, because there shouldn't have been a war of choice by Mr. Putin, and he can end it today," the spokesperson claimed.

Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby, in response to a question by #AlMayadeen, left #Poland's proposal on a #NATO peacekeeping force to be discussed by the alliance in its upcoming summit, blaming the need for such force on #Russia and not clarifying the #US stance on the matter. pic.twitter.com/2BQL06F740

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 22, 2022

The means of ending it, according to the DoD official, are negotiations in good faith, as well as President Putin "getting his troops out of Ukraine and stopping the killing and death and destruction that he and his forces are responsible for."

The US had hinted Monday at the probability of NATO forces entering Ukraine under the label of "peacekeeping forces" at a time when Moscow expressed its disapproval of the idea of a peacekeeping mission for any of the alliance's member states in Ukraine.

NATO's "peacekeeping" proposal comes as the US and its allies continue supplying Kiev with arms to launch offensives against Russian troops and shell Donbass.

Russia launched its special military operation for several reasons, including NATO's eastward expansion. Other reasons were the Ukrainian shelling of Donbass and the killing of the people of the Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic, in addition to Moscow wanting to "denazify" and demilitarize Ukraine.

In response, the US and its allies have rolled out comprehensive sanctions, including restrictions on the Russian central bank, export control measures, SWIFT cutoff for select banks, and closure of airspace to all Russian flights. Many of their companies have suspended their Russian operations.