Overview

• A record 7,000 military personnel paraded along the Champs-Élysées on foot, horseback and in armored vehicles.
• President Macron reviewed the troops and relit the eternal flame at the Arc de Triomphe while cautioning that French freedoms faced their most serious postwar threats.
• Fighter jets trailing red, white and blue smoke led into the first-ever drone light show over the Eiffel Tower, expanding the evening spectacle.
• Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto led 450 troops, including a 200-drummer military band, highlighting deepening defense ties and expected arms deals.
• On the eve of the celebration, Macron pledged an additional €6.5 billion in military spending over two years to bolster France’s defense readiness.