PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech and French presidents said Tuesday their countries remain united in their support for Ukraine fighting the Russian aggression and are ready to look for new ways of helping the Ukrainians succeed.

“We agree that that the only option for us is to continue supporting Ukraine,” Czech President Petr Pavel said. “We’ve agreed that Europe has to play a bigger role in helping Ukraine.”

Pavel said that all options had to be considered but ruled out deploying combat troops in Ukraine, an idea French President Emmanuel Macron floated last week that prompted an outcry from other leaders.

“We haven’t talk about it at all,” Pavel said. “We’re talking about various forms of assistance.” He suggested training of Ukraine’s soldiers might possibly take place inside Ukraine despite the war.

French officials had sought to clarify Macron’s earlier remarks about Western troops on the ground in Ukraine while insisting on the need to send a clear signal to Russia that it cannot win in Ukraine.

“We must all be aware that this war affects us all,” Macron said in Prague. He said European nations cannot put constraints on themselves when Russia has no limits, including threatening use of nuclear weapons.

“It’s a strategic leap that I called for, and that I fully embrace,” Macron said. “We must be rational about the reality of the situation playing out in Europe.”

“I am convinced that the clarity of these words is precisely what Europe needed,” he said. “Ask President (Vladimir) Putin what he is prepared not to do. Who started the war in Ukraine? Vladimir Putin who threatens whatever we do, whatever we say, with nuclear weapons?”

The Kremlin has warned that if NATO sends combat troops, a direct conflict between the alliance and Russia would be inevitable.

Macron welcomed a Czech plan to acquire ammunition that Ukraine badly needs from countries outside the European Union and pledged France’s support for it.

Pavel announced at a security conference in Munich last month that the Czechs had identified 800,000 pieces of artillery ammunition in various countries and were seeking funding for their acquisition.

About 15 countries have voiced their support for the plan, the Czech government said. They also include Britain, Belgium Denmark, Canada, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Macron was scheduled to meet Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala later Tuesday to discuss boosting cooperation in nuclear energy and other fields.

Unlike some other European countries, such as Germany and Austria, the Czech Republic and France are both heavily relying on nuclear energy.

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Associated Press writer Barbara Surk in Nice, France, contributed to this report.