For the first time, Macedonia has sat down at the table of the “coalition of the willing” - the group of countries gathered around Ukraine. At the meeting in Paris on 13 July, focused on strengthening Ukraine’s air defence, Macedonia took part alongside Moldova as new members, given that it is already part of NATO.

Let’s clear away the dust from the sensational headlines circling the region right away. Macedonia is not entering the war and is not sending soldiers. This is about a political presence at a meeting where the talk is of missile defence and of ways to reinforce Ukraine’s defence against Russian attacks. The difference between “taking part in an air-defence meeting” and “joining a war against Russia” is enormous - and it is precisely that difference some outlets deliberately erase in order to scare.

The coalition is not small. The core is made up of nine European countries and Ukraine - Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Britain - with around 37 countries involved in total, in person or by video link. This time the topic was a comprehensive missile-defence system and the details of the American plan to produce “Patriot” missiles directly in Ukraine.

What does this mean for us? Macedonia, as a NATO member, is moving in the same direction as the rest of the alliance - that is no surprise. But the question every citizen has the right to ask is this: how much does this presence cost, what exactly is expected of us, and why do we usually find out about decisions like this through foreign headlines rather than from our own government? Joining the big alliances carries both weight and a price. Clarity about that price is not a luxury - it is the duty of any government that decides in our name.