PARIS — The United Kingdom will host a meeting of the so-called coalition of the willing, a loose partnership of Western countries pledging support for Ukraine, on the sidelines of a French-British summit on Thursday.
According to an Elysée official, some leaders, including Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, will call in remotely from Rome, where he is taking part in a conference dedicated to supporting Kyiv.
“There will be a summit of the coalition of the willing, led by the [French] president and the [British] prime minister… On the agenda, there’s how to maintain Ukraine in a capacity to fight, how to increase pressure on Russia and how to continue the work on the next steps,” said the official, who was granted anonymity due to protocol reasons.
No. 10 Downing Street did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. At this stage it is not clear which leaders of the coalition, which includes over thirty nations, will travel to the U.K.
French President Emmanuel Macron and the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be joining talks from the Northwood Headquarters, home to the NATO Allied Maritime Command.
The coalition of the willing has been spearheaded by France and the U.K. to provide security guarantees to Ukraine in case of a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. It has not come together since March, amid differences over any U.S. military backstop and the need for Washington to support the possible deployment of reassurance troops to Ukraine.
With U.S. President Donald Trump failing to engage Moscow in ceasefire talks, the conversation among Europeans has pivoted to Ukraine’s needs as Russia intensifies its aerial attacks, pounding Kyiv and other cities.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon halted shipments of promised air defense missiles to Ukraine due to worries that U.S. weapons stockpiles have fallen too low, POLITICO reported Tuesday. Ukrainian officials warn that the aid freeze will only encourage Russia.
The Elysée official quoted above denied there was any shift in the priorities of the coalition which had from the start focused on Ukrainian military needs.
Esther Webber contributed reporting.
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