Emmanuel Macron, hosting what will be his last Bastille Day military procession in Paris, welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and roughly two dozen other national leaders to the annual event Monday night. The parade, which set a record with nearly 6,700 troops, featured about 500 soldiers from the “coalition of the willing” — nations pledged to support Ukraine’s post-war security — marching alongside French forces for the first time in roughly two decades. Macron remarked that it was a great honor to have these partners and Ukrainian friends join the march, saying their presence demonstrated a strategic reawakening and unity among allies. The display, also intended to signal Europe’s growing military self-reliance, was overshadowed by a severe heatwave and wildfires that forced many local authorities to cancel traditional fireworks and balls.