France will ship a whole lot of outdated armored autos and new surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine in its struggle in opposition to Russia, French Protection Minister Sebastien Lecornu stated on Sunday.
In an interview with La Tribune Dimanche, Lecornu stated that President Emmanuel Macron, following talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, had requested him to arrange a brand new assist bundle, together with outdated however nonetheless useful French tools.
“The Ukrainian military must defend a really lengthy entrance line, which requires armored autos; that is completely essential for troop mobility and is a part of the Ukrainian requests,” he stated.
He stated France seemed to present a whole lot of VAB (Véhicule de l’Avant Blindé) front-line troop carriers in 2024 and early 2025.
France’s military is progressively changing its hundreds of VABs, which first went into operation within the late Nineteen Seventies, with a brand new multi-role troop provider.
Lecornu added that France was additionally making ready to launch a brand new batch of Aster 30 surface-to-air missiles for the SAMP/T system offered to Kyiv.
The Aster 30 can intercept warplanes, drones and cruise missiles inside a variety of 120 km.
“Ukraine has an pressing want for higher ground-air protection … Russia is intensifying its strikes, particularly on civilians and civil infrastructure,” he stated.
Lecornu stated he had requested authorities protection procurement company DGA (Route Generale de l’Armement) to make proposals to speed up manufacturing of Aster missiles, manufactured by European group MBDA.
Aster missiles are additionally getting used within the Crimson Sea, the place French frigates defend maritime site visitors in opposition to assaults from Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, he stated.
Lecornu stated final week a decree was printed giving the ministry powers to impose inventory ranges and prioritize contracts.
France can be dashing up the event of remotely operated ammunition for supply to Ukraine as early as this summer time, Lecornu stated.
Macron final month recommended the opportunity of European nations sending troops to Ukraine, though he cautioned that there was no consensus as allies agreed to ramp up efforts to ship extra munitions to Kyiv.
