"Coalition of the willing" gathers in Paris - missile defense and military exercises on the agenda
Kyiv • UNN
On Monday, a summit of the "coalition of the willing" will take place in Paris under the chairmanship of France and Britain. They will discuss air defense, security guarantees for Ukraine, and joint military exercises.
A summit of the "coalition of the willing" will take place in Paris on Monday, during which missile defense, security guarantees for Ukraine, and the possibility of conducting joint military exercises will be discussed. This is reported by UNN with reference to Deutsche Presse-Agentur.
The talks will be led by France and the United Kingdom. The German government has confirmed the participation of Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the consultations.
Details
Among the main topics of the meeting are further military support for Ukraine, strengthening its air and missile defense, as well as the implementation of security guarantees in the event of a new attack by russia.
As Reuters notes, at a briefing for journalists, a representative of the French president's office stated that the main focus will be on cooperation in the field of missile defense, ranging from supplying more American Patriot interceptors and promoting the deployment of the Franco-Italian SAMP-T air defense system to considering how European and Ukrainian defense industries can develop alternatives.
One of the options under consideration was cooperation between various European countries on a system that would complement SAMP-T and/or Patriot and give Ukraine a significant role in production.
Leaders will also discuss how to limit Moscow's sources of income, in particular the "shadow fleet" – tankers with an opaque ownership structure used to avoid oversight during the transportation of Russian oil.
He also said that the coalition could announce joint military exercises, as it seeks to turn the concept of future Multinational Forces in Ukraine (MNFU) into a more practical reality.
"It should be remembered that the MNFU includes ground, air, naval, and training components. All these components must be constantly, to varying degrees, tested by all participants to ensure their reliability," the official said.
The consultations will take place after the NATO summit, during which allies pledged billions in military aid to Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, together with at least 25 leaders, will take part in the meeting, which is part of broader efforts that include developing a common position on russia and security guarantees to support any possible peace agreement.
After the consultations, military personnel from the coalition's participating countries will take part in a military parade in Paris on the occasion of Bastille Day.
Addition
The "coalition of the willing," led by the United Kingdom and France, includes over 35 states. At the beginning of the year, its participants agreed to provide Ukraine with legally binding guarantees that the country will not be left without support in the event of repeated Russian aggression.
The coalition has also developed a framework plan for creating multinational deterrence forces. It is envisaged that they will be able to support the Ukrainian army in peacetime, in particular by training military personnel and assisting with the protection of airspace and maritime areas.
Recall
On July 13, a meeting of leaders of the "coalition of the willing" countries will take place in Paris. Moldova and North Macedonia will join the meeting.
In addition, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that a meeting of the "anti-ballistic coalition" will take place, which will be dedicated to the creation of the European anti-ballistic shield FREYJA initiated by Ukraine.