France will mark Bastille Day with a traditional military parade in Paris that will this year serve as a salute to Ukraine's resistance to Russia's brutal invasion.
The celebration -- also known as French National Day -- marks the anniversary of the 1789 storming by rebels of the Bastille, which was then a prison, an assault that is credited with launching the French Revolution.
The parade on the Champs-Elysees will open on July 14 with the presentation of the flags of nine guest countries, most of them neighbors of Ukraine or Russia: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria.
"The parade is marked by, and takes account of, the strategic context," an official in President Emmanuel Macron's office said.
"The idea is to highlight the strategic solidarity with our allies."
French troops deployed close to Ukraine will be honored at the event, which Macron and many foreign leaders will attend.
France rushed some 500 troops to Romania days after Russia's February 24 attack on Ukraine and has indicated it is ready to increase deployments to NATO's eastern flank if needed.