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Coalition of the willing (security guarantees for Ukraine)
UK- and France-led, since Mar 2025· Alliance or organization
FactTreaties, membership, measured data, events.
A UK- and France-led group of roughly 30 countries planning security guarantees for Ukraine after any ceasefire.
See it on the Geopolitics map →The picture
Launched by Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron in March 2025 as US support wavered. In the Paris Declaration of January 6, 2026, members agreed to join a US-led ceasefire-monitoring mechanism, keep arming Ukraine, form a multinational force to rebuild Ukraine's army and deter new attacks, and take on binding commitments if Russia attacks again. Britain and France pledged military hubs in Ukraine. None of it takes effect without a ceasefire, which Russia has not accepted; Moscow rejects any NATO-country troops in Ukraine.
Why it matters
It is Europe's attempt to give Ukraine guarantees short of NATO membership, and a test of whether Europe can field a force without the US in charge.
Key facts and numbers
The published Paris Declaration, UK and French government statements, and summit communiqués from 2025–26.
What to watch
Outlook: how many troops would really deploy, where, and whether the US would back them if Russia attacked them.
Connections (3)
▸Coalition of the willing (security guarantees for Ukraine) would deploy troops after a ceasefire in UkraineOutlook
The relationship
If a ceasefire holds, coalition members plan a multinational force in Ukraine, away from the front line, to help rebuild and train Ukraine's army and deter a new Russian attack, while a US-led mechanism monitors the ceasefire line itself. Britain and France would set up military hubs.
Since when and why
Planned at summits in London and Paris from March 2025; formalized in the Paris Declaration of January 6, 2026, signed with Zelensky; officials have floated up to 30,000 troops.
How solid?
This is a plan, not a fact on the ground: the declaration's text and government statements describe it, but no force has deployed.
What to watch
Outlook: Russia rejects European troops in Ukraine; whether a ceasefire comes, how many countries actually send soldiers, and the rules if they are attacked are unknown.
▸United Kingdom co-leads Coalition of the willing (security guarantees for Ukraine)Fact
The relationship
Britain co-founded the coalition with France in March 2025, co-chairs its meetings, shares military planning with French officers and has pledged troops, aircraft and ships for a post-ceasefire mission. The role keeps Britain central to European security after Brexit.
Since when and why
First leaders' summit in London on March 2, 2025, under Keir Starmer; the UK signed the Paris Declaration on January 6, 2026.
How we know
UK government statements, summit communiqués and the Paris Declaration text record the UK's co-lead role.
What to watch
Whether Britain's shrinking army, about 70,000 regular soldiers, can sustain a long deployment, and how it would be paid for.
▸Andy Burnham (succeeded Keir Starmer) inherited the UK's co-lead role in Coalition of the willing (security guarantees for Ukraine)Fact
The relationship
Burnham kept Starmer's Ukraine policy. He hosted Zelensky soon after taking office, made Kyiv his first foreign trip and co-chaired a coalition meeting with Macron there, pledging help to build Ukrainian missile assembly lines and sharing 'Stone Cloak' jamming technology that helps drones evade Russian air defenses.
Since when and why
London, a late-July 2026 meeting with Zelensky; Kyiv visit in late August 2026, with Merz and other leaders joining remotely.
How we know
Downing Street announcements and press coverage of the Kyiv visit document his role.
What to watch
Outlook: whether a cash-strapped Burnham government will fund a large troop commitment, and how he handles Trump on Ukraine.