Ukraine to present its anti-ballistic programme at Paris meeting today, Zelenskyy says – Europe live

Meanwhile, Nato has joined in condemnations of Russia’s “malicious cyber activities,” saying it continues to pose a threat to Allied security.

In a statement, Nato said:

“We stand in unity and solidarity with all Allies affected by Russia’s malicious cyber activities targeting critical national infrastructure and government entities. In this context, we take note of the statements by the UK and the EU denouncing these activities and Russia’s links to cyber criminals, as well as the sanctions imposed on individuals and entities that aid and abet Russia’s malicious cyber activities.”

It added:

“We call on Russia to stop these destabilising activities, which disregard agreed international norms of responsible state behaviour in cyberspace. Nato stands for a free, open, peaceful and secure cyberspace.”

And the first meeting – a discussion on Ukraine’s anti-ballistic missile strategy, as mentioned by Zelenskyy earlier this afternoon (13:55) – is now under way in Paris.

We now have first pictures from Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s arrival in Paris as he is meeting with France’s Emmanuel Macron before holding talks on Ukraine’s anti-ballistic programme, and talking to other leaders from the Coalition of the Willing.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is in Paris for the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing.

“Ukraine has built strong military momentum. The tide is turning. The EU is fully playing its part with our €90 billion Loan.

Today, we will also discuss how to protect Ukraine’s skies from Russian drones and ballistic missiles. We can and will do more.”

Zelenskyy’s visit to Paris comes after an unexpected reshuffle in the Ukrainian government yesterday, with Yulia Svyrydenko stepping down on Sunday as Ukraine’s prime minister amid predictions she would become Kyiv’s ambassador to the US.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine was “changing its political strategy” and he had offered Svyrydenko the opportunity to lead “a new, important area” in Ukraine’s relations with a key international partner.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Paris for today’s talks with the Coalition of the Willing.

In a brief update on X, he says the meeting “can open up significantly greater opportunities for Ukraine to strengthen its defenses.”

“Our top priority is anti-ballistic defence. We will present our Anti-Ballistic Programme to our partners and, for the first time, hold a meeting at the level of leaders, national security advisors, and defense companies from countries that can make a concrete contribution to building a new anti-ballistic system.”

“We will thank France for its historic support, and our service members will take part in the parade marking France’s national holiday – Bastille Day. We thank everyone who stands with Ukraine,” he said.

The Ukrainian first lady, Olena Zelenska, will meet with the new director-general of Unesco to talk about its work with Ukraine.

Away from Macron’s comments on Armed Force and his Ukraine meeting later today, the French media are also focusing on a fire raging in the historic and much-visited Fontainebleau forest south of Paris.

Earlier today, the fire prompted evacuations of some residential neighbourhoods and disrupted train and highway traffic, AP reported.

Two water-dumping planes were deployed over the area along with hundreds of firefighters, regional fire service spokesperson Paul Laurain told public broadcaster France-Info.

France is experiencing the peak of its third heatwave of the summer, with temperatures surpassing 40C across western and central areas and up to 37C in Paris.

Over in Paris, French president Emmanuel Macron is delivering a major speech to the country’s armed forces, as is customary on the eve of Bastille Day parade.

He speaks about France’s effort to strengthen its military, including through joint procurement and partnerships with EU allies, to get ready for whatever may come in the future.

“Yes, we must prepare for the wars to come. But let us not be mistaken: our ability to wage them will depend on our credibility today. It is today’s wars that we must win,” he says, drawing among other on the support for Ukraine and supporting partners in the Middle East.

In a passage paying tribute to all those who died serving France, he says:

“The message we send to the world is this: Yes, peace is our goal. Yes, we cherish freedom and justice. And yes, we stand ready to fight to defend them always, even at the cost of our blood if necessary.”

Macron also warns against rising nationalism, contrasting it with healthy patriotism, Le Figaro reported.

in Kyiv

Meanwhile, Russia has been forced to suspend shipping in the Sea of Azov after 90 vessels were targeted by Ukrainian drones in less than a week.

Ukraine’s drone forces chief, Robert Brovdi, said on Sunday that his units had hit 10 tankers and four ferries overnight, as well as a major oil refinery in the city of Syzran. There had been several strikes on electricity substations in occupied Crimea, he added.

“The technological humiliation of the [Russian] empire continues. It will fall because of Crimea,” Brovdi wrote on social media. He said Moscow’s shadow fleet, which transports sanctioned oil products around the world, was “noticeably shrinking” and could no longer use the Kerch strait, connecting the Sea of Azov with the Black Sea.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov went even further and was quoted as dismissing the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing as “a coalition of warmongers.”

“These are the countries that are undertaking hostile actions against Russia, so we will be watching very closely.”

Responding to the Paris summit on France, the Kremlin said it would “closely follow” the discussions today, but criticised the Coalition of the Willing as “the group of countries which want the Ukraine war to continue,” Reuters reported.

Meanwhile, Germany joined France (10:14) in summoning the Russian ambassador to Berlin over what the EU alleges were Russian cyber-attacks against several EU countries and Ukraine (10:38, 10:52).

The German foreign ministry said the attacks were unacceptable and would be met with decisive actions, Reuters reported.

Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded to Russian attacks overnight on Ukraine, saying “the Russians have once again ’triumphed’ over absolutely civilian targets,” as they struck “ordinary passenger buses in Odesa, ordinary apartment buildings in Zaporizhzhia, and an ordinary hospital in the Kharkiv region.”

“Every single day of this war that Russia is waging against life only proves that supporting Ukraine is the right thing to do from every perspective – defence, political, and simply human. And everyone around the world sees it.

They see that Ukraine needs more air defence, more protection for people’s lives, and that the Russian authorities have gone insane over this war and are completely irrational in refusing to end it.

But pressure on Russia must work. New sanctions against the aggressor, new support packages for Ukraine, new projects – like our European anti-ballistic initiative, FREYJA – all of this must work. Thank you to everyone who is helping. In the near future, there will be meetings and negotiations that must strengthen our defences.”

Later today we will be focusing on the Paris summit on Ukraine, which comes at a “powerful moment of renewed transatlantic convergence and unity”, but also of “more favourable developments on the ground” for Kyiv, the Élysée said.

The leaders of the Coalition of the Willing – led by Macron and Starmer – are set to focus on cooperation on air and missile defence with Ukraine, including licensed weapons production in the country.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy and other leaders are expected to stay in Paris for tomorrow’s Bastille Day parade on the Champs-Élysées, which Macron’s office said will highlight France’s ongoing support for France, AFP reported.

EU’s Kaja Kallas said earlier that the foreign ministers meeting in Brussels were hoping to get a deal on as many as 250 listings, on top of the 21st sanctions package.

“This is the biggest number of listings we have done so far. It’s also reaction to the attacks that Russia has had on the [Ukrainian] civilians recently,” she said.

“There are different people, individuals that have been engaging in in different activities. So it’s a vast list I hope that we get to adopt today. When it comes to the 21st package, there are still some open questions, but we are working towards agreement,” she added.

The UK has also updated its sanctions, listing 24 individuals and entities behind “the destructive and hybrid operations” in Europe, including an attempt to disrupt Poland’s electricity grid last year (Europe Live, January).

“Today’s action targets 24 individuals and entities behind the destructive cyber and hybrid operations including cybercriminals involved in proxy networks linked to the Russian Intelligence Services (RIS).

This includes sanctioning GRU senior leadership figures Vyacheslav Stafeyev, Ivan Senin and Ivan Kasyanenko for their role in directing GRU cyber and hybrid threat operations. GRU Unit 29155 cyber division worked with cybercriminals, including the company IMPULS, to recruit hackers and cyber specialists from universities and academies across Russia.

In addition, the UK together with EU member states is today attributing the attack on Poland’s energy grid to Russia’s FSB Centre 16. This reckless attack failed but could have caused 500,000 citizens to lose electricity in the depths of winter. It is another example of the Russian state’s irresponsible attempts to sow chaos across Europe.

As Russia struggles to sustain its ailing war effort in Ukraine, the Russian Intelligence Service agencies have tasked cybercriminals to collect intelligence to support Russia’s military and foreign policy objectives, threatening security across Europe. This is another example of Russia using its criminal networks to do its dirty work.”

And just like that, the EU has just issued new sanctions over “Russia’s malicious cyber ecosystem targeting the EU, its member states and international partners.”

“These activities have included infiltration of governmental networks and sabotage of critical infrastructure. Among others, France, Germany, Poland, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Finland have been targeted.

In France, the 16^th Centre has conducted cyber espionage against strategic governmental entities since 2010 and defence industry in 2025.

In Germany, it has targeted governmental entities.

Recently in Poland, the 16^th Centre has carried out disruptive sabotage operations against critical infrastructure, including combined heating and power plants.”

Nine people and four entities got sanctioned, the EU said, including GRU intelligence officers, cybercriminals and “private companies that contribute to Russia’s efforts to destabilise the EU.”

“We strongly condemn Russia’s behaviour and misuse of this cyber ecosystem, targeting public services and critical infrastructure, causing disruptions and financial losses.”

French president Emmanuel Macron is going to host the Coalition of the Willing in Paris later today amid hopes that Ukraine’s recent advances in strikes on Russia could force Vladimir Putin to a negotiating table.

The meeting at the Hôtel des Invalides – hosted just before Bastille Day – will bring together over 20 European leaders for further talks on how to help Kyiv and put more pressure on Moscow.

Earlier, Macron will meet with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

There will be a press conference with Macron, Zelenskyy, Germany’s Friedrich Merz, and Britain’s outgoing PM, Keir Starmer, in the late afternoon.

Building up to the meeting, France’s foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot said France will summon the ⁠Russian ambassador ⁠to Paris ​in the coming ⁠days over an alleged cyberhacking ⁠campaign ​conducted ‌by Russia ‌against European countries ‌including France, Reuters reported.

“We ‌are going to publicly ​condemn a widespread cyber campaign carried ⁠out by ​Russia against ​at ​least 10 ​European countries,” ‌Barrot ​told ​BFM TV.

“We will also impose sanctions on nine individuals and four entities responsible for this cyber campaign, which was orchestrated by the FSB” security service, he added.

Separately, some 300 kilometers up north from Paris, EU foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels to discuss the bloc’s next, 21st, package of sanctions against Russia.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters that “there are still some open questions” and the package has not been signed off by the ministers, but hoped an agreement could be struck later today.

Lithuanian ​foreign minister Kęstutis Budrys said EU countries had yet to reach a decision on a proposed maritime services ban and ⁠tightening restrictions on Russian liquefied natural ​gas.

“So ​I’m looking to ​see whether we are serious ​enough. ‌We cannot put ​economic ​interests above security interests … that is a very dangerous trend,” he told reporters.

Lots for us to cover.

I will bring you all the latest here.

It’s Monday, 13 July 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.