Ten nations, Ukraine form European missile defense pact

A coalition of ten nations announced the formation of a new European antiballistic missile defense initiative on Monday, July 13, 2026, citing the growing threat of ballistic missiles to the continent's security. The founding members are Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.

The announcement was made in Paris during a major summit of international leaders supporting Ukraine, known as the Coalition of the Willing. The joint declaration frames the effort as a purely defensive project to build a shared antiballistic missile capacity for Europe. It states the goal is to create an integrated missile defense architecture to deter and defeat future missile threats through collective effort, technological openness, and trusted industrial cooperation.

Officials said the coalition will leverage the combined defense industrial base, research capacity, and operational experience of the participating nations. The declaration specifically acknowledged Ukraine's unique experience gained from defending against Russia's ongoing war of aggression, referencing recent weeks of Russian ballistic missile strikes. "We do this not...