Coalition of the Willing Force to Hold First Major Exercise: 2,800 Troops from 11 Nations to Drill in Poland for a Post-Ceasefire Deployment to Ukraine
The UK Ministry of Defence announced on November 3 that the Multinational Force Ukraine (MNF-U), the military arm of the Coalition of the Willing, will hold its first major exercise, codenamed Koalicja (Polish for 'coalition'), from November 9 to 22 around Nowa Dęba in southeastern Poland, about 100 kilometres west of the Ukrainian border. About 2,800 troops will rehearse how the force would move, protect itself and be supplied if it deployed to Ukraine after a ceasefire.
Eleven nations are taking part: Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Türkiye and the UK. France is sending the largest contingent, about 1,100 personnel; the UK is sending about 300, including RAF Typhoon fighters and a Voyager refuelling aircraft, with the Army's 7 Brigade rehearsing logistical movements. Türkiye will not send troops to Poland but will lead a separate maritime simulation from Istanbul testing readiness for mine clearance in the Black Sea. The exercise uses only light equipment, including drones for counter-drone and self-defence drills, and no tanks.
The Multinational Force Ukraine was set up in September 2025 as the Coalition of the Willing's military arm. Its headquarters is in Paris and is due to move to London this year; it is commanded by British Lieutenant General Tom Bateman, with French General Armel Dirou as his deputy. Defence Secretary Wes Streeting called it 'a real force, not a hypothetical plan.' Bateman stressed it is not a peacekeeping or ceasefire-monitoring mission and has no offensive role: the force would enter Ukraine only after hostilities cease and at the Ukrainian government's invitation, to help rebuild Ukraine's armed forces, help secure its skies and help reopen Black Sea shipping. It is not a NATO operation.
Russia has previously said that plans to deploy foreign forces in Ukraine are a threat and that such forces would be legitimate targets. The exercise falls in the same week as U.S.-Russia-Ukraine talks scheduled for November 10-11 in Abu Dhabi; German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on November 3 separately invited the Coalition of the Willing to meet in Berlin on November 19 to coordinate diplomatic and aid arrangements for a possible ceasefire.
Source: UK Ministry of Defence
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：将参加「Koalicja」演习的英国皇家空军「台风」战斗机（资料图）。照片 CC BY-SA 4.0，作者 Jakub Hałun，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: A Royal Air Force Typhoon jet, of the type taking part in Exercise Koalicja (file photo). CC BY-SA 4.0, by Jakub Hałun, via Wikimedia Commons.
