Nine European countries and Ukraine form anti-ballistic missile coalition

Nine European countries and Ukraine have announced the creation of a joint anti-ballistic missile coalition, responding to a growing threat of ballistic missiles against Europe. Participating countries unveiled the initiative through a formal declaration.

The declaration states the coalition will serve in a "purely defensive" manner and could include joint development efforts intended to ease reliance on existing air-defense systems. The initiative comes as missile threats in the region have risen in recent months.

The move is the latest step in European countries' broader push to deepen defense cooperation. Concrete capability targets and a timeline for the coalition are expected to be clarified in the coming weeks.