(MENAFN- UkrinForm) France clearly adheres to its obligations regarding military support to Ukraine, in particular the transfer of Mirage 2000-5 aircraft. Crew training will last several months.
That's according to French Ambassador to Ukraine Gaël Veyssière, who spoke at a briefing on July 14, commenting on the implementation of the security agreement signed with Ukraine five months ago, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"The president of the Republic announced specific directions for the implementation of the agreement. In particular, speaking of military materiel: the supply of additional Scalp missiles, supply of Aster missiles for SAMP/T air defense systems, and it was also stated that the French authorities would like to transfer to Ukraine a certain number of Mirage 2000-5 aircraft. All these directions are added to the supply, which has already been ongoing for a long time – the French Caesar artillery systems. A further increase is foreseen in the number of these artillery units to be supplied to and used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” said the ambassador.
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He recalled that on June 7, during the visit of President Volodymyr Zelensky to Paris, an agreement was signed with the Caesar systems' manufacturer regarding the production of projectiles in Ukraine.
"During the visit on June 7, an agreement was signed with Nexter, a manufacturer of Caesar systems and projectiles for them, regarding the launch of the production of projectiles of this caliber in Ukraine, as well as repair work for this equipment directly at Ukrainian facilities," Veyssière noted.
Regarding the transfer of Mirage 2000-5 aircraft to Ukraine, the ambassador emphasized that the commitment will be fulfilled.
"There were very clear commitments made by the French authorities, and they will be respected, there is no doubt about that. The content of these commitments has not been published, and today I will not make new announcements in this regard either. But I emphasize once again that all this is happening in close coordination with the military leadership of Ukraine. You understand, despite our desire to do this as soon as possible, there are certain time limits that cannot be shortened. It is about the training of pilots and maintenance personnel for these planes we are talking about several months," he added.
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Gripen supplies
As reported, on June 6, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the transfer of Mirage fighter jets to Ukraine and the training of pilots in France.
French fighters are carriers of SCALP cruise missiles, which are already in service with Ukraine's forces. Also, these missiles are carried by Ukraine's Su-24Ms. The specific terms of the transfer and the number of aircraft have not been disclosed.
On February 16, Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron signed a security agreement between Ukraine and France.
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