Emmanuel Macron is reluctant to hand over power, a source has claimed, as the French president celebrates his last Bastille Day before relinquishing his role as leader. 

For France's biggest national holiday, Macron hosted around 30 other leaders for an event that appeared aimed at showing both Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump that Europe is united and stepping up to defend itself.

But according to a source close to the government, the French president is struggling to come to terms with the fact he will no longer be leader come the May 2027 presidential elections, which will mark the end of his term. 

Speaking on condition of anonymity to French newspaper Le Figaro, the source said Macron has every intention of remaining in power 'until the very end' and plans to hand over power on the very last day of his term on May 13 next year. 

The source added that the French president 'hates it' when people mention he only has months left as leader

'There will be no farewell tour, because the word 'farewell' is forbidden. There will be a 'see you later,' followed by a 'see you soon!' the source said.

Macron was joined on Monday by Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky and some 30 other heads of state or government in the special viewing area for a military parade. 

Ukrainian troops marched along the cobblestoned avenue, and Ukrainian co-pilots trained in France were on board two Mirage 2000B fighter jets alongside French air force pilots. 

On the ground, the parade opened with around 500 troops from the 'coalition of the willing' grouping of countries that have pledged to help with Ukraine's postwar security. 

Macron said Monday night that it's a great honour to welcome to the parade all the partners in the coalition of the willing and our Ukrainian friends who will march with us and illustrate its strategic reawakening and our unity.'

The foreign fighters in combat fatigues and dress uniforms marched with their national flags, in a break with tradition — usually only one foreign country is invited to take part in the parade. 

It was the first time in some 20 years that British troops took part. Ukrainian forces got the loudest cheers from the crowd.

In the skies, aircraft from Germany, the United Kingdom, Croatia, Poland, Denmark, Greece, Sweden, Norway, Spain and Italy were taking part.

The parade set a record in terms of the number of troops: The Paris military governor said 7,600 troops were marching this year, compared with 5,810 in 2025. 

Thousands of soldiers started taking up positions early Tuesday, many taking selfies as helicopters flew overhead. 

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