War in Ukraine: the “Coalition of the Volunteers” launches an unprecedented full-scale exercise in Poland

No tank battle in perspective, the objective is above all to test the delivery of equipment, the coordination of staffs, transmissions and the protection of troops against drones. The Koalicja exercise ("coalition" in Polish) started on Monday, November 9 in Poland, and, coincidentally, it is on the eve of new discussions between Russia and Ukraine, in Abu Dhabi, in which France is expected to participate.

In Nova Deba, this is the first major military exercise of the Multinational Force for Ukraine (MNF-U), under Franco-British command. The MNF-U is the military arm of the coalition of the willing, created at the initiative of France and the United Kingdom in March 2025. Its objective: to prevent Russia from attacking Ukraine again after a possible ceasefire, by sustainably strengthening Ukrainian defense capabilities.

For the first time, the coalition of volunteers is moving from declarations to action, with these maneuvers involving 2,800 soldiers on the ground. France provides nearly a third of its troops, the first contingents after the United Kingdom and around ten other countries.

Beyond the military aspect, the issue is also political: firstly send a message to Moscow by demonstrating that the Europeans are ready to commit militarily to the security of Ukraine, in order to deter any further Russian aggression, and, then, weigh in on the peace negotiations by reminding, on the eve of the discussions in Abu Dhabi under American mediation, that the security of Ukraine cannot be negotiated without the Europeans. The latter finally want to display a form of unity despite the differences: Paris and London are ready to deploy soldiers in Ukraine, when Berlin favors a presence in neighboring countries and Warsaw wants to limit itself to major logistical support.