Macron pledges fighter jets and training for Ukraine in new military aid
Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday that France would transfer French Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets to Ukraine and train 4,500 Ukrainian soldiers.
In a television interview, the French president spoke about transferring the fighter jets without specifying their number. Reuters reported that it was concerned about the sale of these planes.
Macron said that the Mirage jets will help Ukraine "protect its skies." He announced the "new cooperation," including regarding aircraft, during a meeting on Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He added that a "pilot training programme" is also planned and explained that he proposes training 4,500 Ukrainian soldiers.
French troops in Ukraine? Macron's declaration
When asked about the potential deployment of French military instructors to Ukraine, he said there should be no taboo topics. Ukraine's territory is sovereign. It's not about sending troops to training in the conflict zone, but when Ukraine is facing a challenge, it should respond as we have done every time," he said.
He argued that Paris wanted to help Ukraine defend itself but did not want to "escalate" the war. He also assured France was not "aggressive towards Russia."
The French leader also confirmed the detention by Russian authorities of a citizen of his country, Laurent Vinatier. He emphasised that the detainee was not working for France but for a Swiss non-governmental organisation. In Moscow, the Investigative Committee announced that the Frenchman is suspected of gathering sensitive information regarding the Russian armed forces.
