Coalition of the willing
Template:Short description Template:Other uses A coalition of the willing is a rhetorical term referring to a temporary international partnership created for the purpose of achieving a particular objective, usually of military or political nature.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>
Origin
The term was coined in the early 1970s by MIT professor Lincoln P. Bloomfield and his colleagues, including Harland Cleveland of the University of Minnesota.<ref name="baltimoresun20020421">Template:Cite web</ref> In July 1971, Bloomfield described the need for a coalition of willing nations to support important peacekeeping or conflict stabilization goals endorsed by the UN, in a NYT op-ed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The term was picked up by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in a 1973 letter to Bloomfield, acknowledging the latter's "proposal for 'coalitions of the willing'."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On May 9, 1988, Cleveland wrote a letter 'for the record' to the editor of Foreign Affairs making clear that Bloomfield was the originator of the phrase, first published in his 1974 book In Search of American Foreign Policy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2002, Bloomfield published another op-ed, insisting that Cleveland share credit for the phrase.<ref name="baltimoresun20020421" />
Usage
Military and political
The term was used by US President Bill Clinton in June 1994 in relation to possible operations against North Korea, at the height of the 1994 stand-off with the country over nuclear weapons.<ref name="ib">Ibiblio.org (originally official White House release), Interview with the President by Sam Donaldson ABC, June 5, 1994.</ref>
In his letter introducing the 2002 National Security Strategy, US President George W. Bush emphasized the important role of "coalitions of the willing."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Coalition of the willing referred to the US-led Multi-National Force – Iraq, the military command during the 2003 invasion of Iraq and much of the ensuing Iraq War.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
It has also been applied to the Australian-led INTERFET operation in East Timor from 1999 until 2000.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On March 1, 2025, Czech president Petr Pavel made a social media post on X, calling for the formation of a coalition of the willing to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The next day, British prime minister Keir Starmer echoed this sentiment after an international summit hosted in London between 18 European leaders.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He said that the UK would work with France and other European countries to provide security guarantees for Ukraine, with a long-term goal of a peace agreement of some kind with Russia.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On August 18, 2025 President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen termed the emergency summit of European leaders at the August 2025 White House multilateral meeting on Ukraine "the Coalition of the Willing".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Other
Ralph Gonsalves of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines referred to the partnership of Fidel Castro of Cuba, Patrick Manning of Trinidad and Tobago, and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela for the construction of the Argyle International Airport as “the Coalition of the Willing," with a display dedicated to it located at the airport.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Manning also sought to create a "coalition of the willing" in the form of an economic union with member states from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States in 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The People's Partnership administration of former prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago Kamla Persad-Bissessar which won the 2010 Trinidad and Tobago general election has been referenced as a "coalition of the willing."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In the early 2000s, Hungary’s Ambassador to the U.S. Andras Simonyi formed a charity rock band he named "Coalition of the Willing" with former Steely Dan and Doobie Brothers guitarist Jeff "Skunk" Baxter and U.S. officials, including then-Assistant Secretary of State Lincoln Bloomfield Jr.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>