Zelenskyy to visit France on March 26 for high-stakes meeting with Macron

Le Monde reported the information, citing the press service of the Élysée Palace.

“The head of state will confirm to President Zelenskyy that France will continue and strengthen its military and financial support for Ukraine as an absolute priority,” the statement says.

It is noted that the purpose of the meeting is to prepare for a summit of the countries of the so-called “coalition of the willing,” which are ready to provide Ukraine with security guarantees. Both leaders will also make statements to the press before a bilateral meeting and working dinner.

What is the coalition of the willing and who is part of it?

The coalition of the willing consists of countries that have pledged support to Ukraine in its war against Russia and have expressed readiness to help establish peace in Ukraine. Most of them have stated the possibility of providing peacekeeping forces to Ukraine or at least have not ruled it out.

The formation of the coalition was announced by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer following the summit of 18 world leaders in London held on March 2, 2025.

The initiative aims to strengthen European support for Ukraine amid the uncertainty of U.S. policy and to lay the groundwork for a strong peace settlement to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

The name of the coalition was coined by Czech President Petr Pavel. Before the London summit, he called for creating a “broad coalition of the willing” to put an end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

On March 11, 2025, representatives from the security services of 30 countries met in Paris to discuss the creation of international security forces for Ukraine that would maintain peace in the event of a ceasefire agreement.

On March 15, Keir Starmer held a virtual meeting with leaders of European and Commonwealth countries to assemble a “coalition of the willing” to explore options for establishing “security forces” that could be deployed in Ukraine to deter renewed Russian attacks should a ceasefire be agreed upon. Following the meeting, Starmer noted that the coalition had rejected Putin’s “yes, but” approach to a ceasefire in Ukraine.

The initiative is led by the United Kingdom and France, and also includes other EU countries, the EU itself, and nations that are not members of either NATO or the EU. There is no exact list of participants, but the following countries are considered part of the coalition: France, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Baltic States (Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia), the Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Spain, Denmark, Romania, Norway, Finland, Turkey, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and others.