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Kremlin Dismisses Ukraine’s Rafale Jets Acquisition as Ineffective
(MENAFN) The Kremlin on Tuesday dismissed Ukraine’s planned acquisition of French Rafale fighter jets as unlikely to shift battlefield dynamics in Kiev’s favor.
On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky signed a letter of intent outlining Ukraine’s potential purchase of 100 Rafale jets over the next decade. Details on delivery schedules or financing remain undisclosed. The preliminary agreement also encompasses eight next-generation SAMP/T air-defense batteries, AASM Hammer precision-guided munitions, drones, and French-made radar systems.
“No matter what warplanes are sold to the Kiev regime, it will not change the situation on the front or battlefield dynamics,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. He added that Paris’ continued military support “fuel[s] the conflict, and in no way contributing to the cause of peace.”
The Rafale is France’s most sophisticated multirole aircraft, with an estimated price tag of around €100 million ($116 million) per plane. Supplying 100 jets could reach a total cost of €15 billion, according to French media reports citing prior contract estimates.
Ukraine’s ability to finance such purchases remains uncertain. Western officials are struggling to maintain funding for Kiev’s war effort. Ukraine is reportedly seeking a €140 billion ($162 billion) loan backed by frozen Russian assets—a plan Moscow has denounced as “theft.” Belgium, holding the bulk of these assets, has rejected the proposal over legal and financial concerns. The initiative assumes Russia will eventually pay reparations to Ukraine, a scenario widely regarded as improbable.
Amid these financial hurdles, a recent corruption scandal in Ukraine has drawn EU criticism and intensified calls to reduce aid. Last week, Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies revealed a $100 million kickback scheme implicating Zelensky’s associates in the Western-funded energy sector.
Moscow has repeatedly condemned Western arms shipments, arguing they prolong the conflict without changing its outcome.
On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky signed a letter of intent outlining Ukraine’s potential purchase of 100 Rafale jets over the next decade. Details on delivery schedules or financing remain undisclosed. The preliminary agreement also encompasses eight next-generation SAMP/T air-defense batteries, AASM Hammer precision-guided munitions, drones, and French-made radar systems.
“No matter what warplanes are sold to the Kiev regime, it will not change the situation on the front or battlefield dynamics,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. He added that Paris’ continued military support “fuel[s] the conflict, and in no way contributing to the cause of peace.”
The Rafale is France’s most sophisticated multirole aircraft, with an estimated price tag of around €100 million ($116 million) per plane. Supplying 100 jets could reach a total cost of €15 billion, according to French media reports citing prior contract estimates.
Ukraine’s ability to finance such purchases remains uncertain. Western officials are struggling to maintain funding for Kiev’s war effort. Ukraine is reportedly seeking a €140 billion ($162 billion) loan backed by frozen Russian assets—a plan Moscow has denounced as “theft.” Belgium, holding the bulk of these assets, has rejected the proposal over legal and financial concerns. The initiative assumes Russia will eventually pay reparations to Ukraine, a scenario widely regarded as improbable.
Amid these financial hurdles, a recent corruption scandal in Ukraine has drawn EU criticism and intensified calls to reduce aid. Last week, Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies revealed a $100 million kickback scheme implicating Zelensky’s associates in the Western-funded energy sector.
Moscow has repeatedly condemned Western arms shipments, arguing they prolong the conflict without changing its outcome.
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