The UK and France will lead a 2,800-person multinational exercise in Poland this month to test preparations for a force that could deploy to Ukraine after fighting ends.
Exercise Koalicja will bring together personnel from 11 countries to rehearse moving, supplying, and protecting the force.
Participants will practice coordinating for land, air, and maritime operations.
It will be the first major exercise conducted by Multinational Force Ukraine (MNF-U), the military component of the Coalition of the Willing, a group of countries supporting Kyiv.
The proposed force would help rebuild Ukraine’s military and support security in its airspace and surrounding waters.
Deployment would require both an end to fighting and a request from the Ukrainian government.
Its remit would exclude peacekeeping and ceasefire monitoring.
Land, Air, and Maritime Preparations
The UK contribution will include 300 personnel, RAF Typhoon fighters, and a Voyager aerial refueling aircraft.
Troops from the British Army’s 7 Brigade will practice logistical movements, while the aircraft will rehearse operations intended to support the eventual resumption of commercial flights over Ukraine.
The exercise will also assess command arrangements and how participating militaries would coordinate personnel, equipment, and supplies.
Alongside activities in Poland, Turkish forces will establish the force’s maritime component in Istanbul and test plans for clearing naval mines to help restore safe commercial access to Ukrainian ports.
Other participating countries are Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden.
