Ukraine’s Western partners met in Paris on Monday to increase military support, with air defense the top priority as the war enters its fifth year.President Volodymyr Zelensky joined representatives of all 37 Coalition of the Willing members at Les Invalides, AFP reported. The group was formed by France and the UK after Russia’s 2022 invasion and has now met more than 15 times.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.Ukraine’s air defenses have been strained by weeks of intensified Russian ballistic missile strikes. Military sources said the coalition is set to announce the first joint exercises of the Multinational Force for Ukraine, a step toward eventual deployment once fighting ends.Sweden’s top military commander, Michael Claesson, said the summit’s purpose was to confirm “the commitment is still there from all nations.”Anti-missile coalition announcedNine European countries and Ukraine – Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK – announced ahead of the summit a plan to build “purely defensive” anti-ballistic missile capability for Europe. Their joint statement cited a growing missile threat from Russia.French President Emmanuel Macron said the summit aimed to strengthen Ukraine’s defenses, increase pressure on Moscow and build long-term security guarantees.The summit was held the day before France’s Bastille Day, whose military parade this year will highlight Ukraine support. In a pre-holiday address to troops, Macron said Europe was becoming a power capable of defending itself and pledged to defend peace and the rule of law “at the cost of blood if necessary.” He also called for deeper European defense-industry cooperation, despite the collapse last month of a joint French-German fighter jet program.