Ukraine to get up to 100 French-made Rafale fighter jets
Ukraine will get up to 100 France’s Rafale F4 fighter jets as well as advanced air defence systems in a major deal to boost Kyiv’s ability to protect the country against deadly Russian attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the move as “historic”, after signing the letter of intent with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron at an air base near Paris.
Deliveries of the Rafale F4’s are planned to be completed by 2035, while the joint production of interceptor drones is starting this year.
Financial details are yet to be worked out, but reports say France plans to attract EU financing and also access frozen Russian assets – a controversial move that has split the 27-member bloc.
A France air force Rafale F4 flies over the Baltic Sea as part of Nato’s patrol mission [AFP via Getty Images]
“This is a strategic agreement which will last for 10 years starting from the next year,” Zelensky said at a joint briefing with Macron on Monday.
Ukraine would also get “very strong French radars”, eight air defence systems and other advanced weaponry, he added.
Zelensky stressed that using such advanced systems “means protecting someone’s life… this is very important”.
Russia has in recent months increased its drone and missile attacks against Ukraine, targeting energy and rail infrastructure and causing massive blackouts across the country.
Dozens of civilians have been killed in the strikes, in what Kyiv and its Western allies describe as war crimes.
In the latest overnight Russian missile attack, three people were killed and 15 injured, in the north-eastern Ukrainian city of Balakliya, local officials said.
Speaking alongside Zelensky, Macron said: “We’re planning Rafales, 100 Rafales – that’s huge. That’s what’s needed for the regeneration of the Ukrainian military”.
The French president added that he wanted to help Ukraine prepare for whatever was coming next.
Ukraine’s air force is already using France’s Mirage warplanes as well as US-made F-16s. Kyiv has also recently provisionally agreed to obtain Sweden’s Gripen fighter jets.
After France, Zelensky will travel to Spain to seek further military and other support for Ukraine.
Over the weekend, he secured a gas deal with Greece. Vital supplies of US liquefied natural gas are now expected to start flowing into Ukraine this winter via a pipeline across the Balkans.
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukraine’s territory and Russian troops have been making slow advances along the vast front line – despite reported huge combat casualties.
