At the air base in the French city of Vélizy-Villacoublay, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President of France Emmanuel Macron signed a Declaration of Intent on Cooperation in the Acquisition of Defense Equipment for Ukraine.
This document will enable Ukraine to procure military equipment from France’s defense industrial and technological base for modernizing its national Armed Forces.
Primarily, it concerns 100 Rafale F4 aircraft for Ukraine’s combat aviation by 2035, SAMP/T air‑defense systems, air‑defense radars, air-to-air missiles, and aerial bombs. The declaration also provides for the possibility of technology transfer and joint aircraft production with localization in Ukraine.
“I am very grateful to France from my very first visit. I thank Emmanuel Macron and all the French people. But this moment is something significant and truly historic for both our nations. New aircraft, new reinforcement, new steps to strengthen our army and our country,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
In addition, Ukraine and France will co-produce interceptor drones and work on developing critical technologies and components that can be integrated into Ukrainian unmanned systems. Joint projects between the Ukrainian and French defense industries will begin this year.
“This is a short-term, medium-term, and long-term perspective. And all of it is necessary. Even if peace were signed tomorrow, this would still be essential, because the guarantee of that peace is a strong Ukrainian army able to hold its ground. These capabilities will provide that,” Emmanuel Macron emphasized.
Before signing the declaration, the leaders met with the heads of French defense companies. Each of them presented in detail the technical characteristics, operating features, advantages of specific types of weapons, as well as production capacities and timelines.
