Macron Rallies „Coalition of the Willing” in Paris for Ukraine

For Serbia, which is building its European perspective while refusing to join the sanctions regime against Moscow, the Paris gathering is another reminder that the continent’s security architecture is being reshaped regardless of the hesitations in Washington, and that the room for classic neutrality narrows with every new summit that measures how far Europe is willing to shoulder the burden of a war on its eastern edge on its own.

French President Emmanuel Macron on July 13 hosted leaders of at least 25 countries of the so-called coalition of the willing at the Les Invalides complex in Paris, on the eve of the military parade with which France marks Bastille Day. It was the broadest lineup of the group to date, and the host deliberately placed the meeting at a symbolic venue and at a symbolic moment, signaling that European support for Kyiv is not weakening despite what Western capitals now openly call war fatigue.

An air shield as the central theme

At the heart of the talks was strengthening Ukraine’s air defense, an area in which Kyiv has for months sought concrete answers amid ever denser Russian strikes on cities behind the front. The agenda included an integrated anti-missile system, cooperation on systems against ballistic missiles and, as perhaps the most concrete step, a U.S. plan for licensed production of Patriot interceptors on Ukrainian territory. The idea that key weapons would not merely be delivered but manufactured inside Ukraine marks a shift from the logic of short-term deliveries toward a long-term industrial link that would make Ukrainian defense less dependent on individual political decisions in allied capitals.

Alongside the military component, leaders weighed the distribution of some 70 billion euros in aid, as well as security guarantees that would activate in the event of a ceasefire. According to accounts that accompanied the summit’s preparation, a plan for deploying a multinational force away from the front line has already been drawn up, resting on legally binding bilateral agreements and a U.S. mechanism for monitoring any halt in fighting. In doing so, the coalition moves from declarative solidarity toward operational planning for the day after the war, even if that day remains uncertain.

The gathering came directly after a fresh series of strikes. Ukrainian authorities said nine people were killed on July 12, three of them in attacks on the Dnipropetrovsk region, while casualties were also recorded in Kryvyi Rih and Kherson. At the same time, U.S. efforts to end the war have effectively stalled since Washington pivoted to its own conflict with Iran, leaving Europeans with the larger share of the burden and sharpening the question of who will finance Ukraine’s defense, and for how long.

What does the Paris summit mean for the region?

For Belgrade and the wider region, the message from Les Invalides is twofold. On one hand, Europe is demonstrating that it is ready to deepen its own security role and does not necessarily wait for approval from across the Atlantic, giving the transatlantic link a new, more Europe-centered dimension. On the other, the increasingly clear split between countries that send troops, those that offer only financing and those that stay aside leaves little room for ambiguous positions. Serbia, which formally aspires to Union membership, is watching how loyalty toward Kyiv is ever more treated as a test of European seriousness rather than a matter of choice.

Macron’s calculation is plain: the Paris stage, with a military parade in the background, is meant to show that the coalition is not faltering even when daily deaths are counted in the dozens, nor when Washington looks the other way. The question remains how much of the promised 70 billion and the multinational force will actually materialize, since the history of this war is full of solemn pledges that frayed in the execution.

Do you believe European support for Ukraine will hold even once American attention is permanently turned to other fronts?