French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday, October 7, at the end of an informal meeting of European Union heads of state in Prague, the creation of a "special fund" for Ukraine's military equipment, invaded by Russia on February 24.

"We are working with a few European partners on additional deliveries of Caesar", declared the French head of state to the press.

"We took the decision to create a special fund which will allow Ukraine to buy, if necessary, the materials which it needs the most, to support its war effort and its resistance to the Russian assaults."

"We are going to endow this special fund with 100 million euros to start", he added, which will allow "to also work with the French defense industrial base".

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These funds will finance the purchase of "defensive weapons" such as those already delivered by France since the start of the Russian offensive in Ukraine in February, said the French head of state.

“There is very clearly a reaffirmed desire to support Ukraine at this time of the war, to continue to support it with our budgetary support, with the preparation for reconstruction or with our military support,” he said. underline.

The objective, according to Emmanuel Macron, is to help Ukraine "purchase directly from our manufacturers the equipment it needs most to support its war effort".

“We continue in the same category of weapons,” he said – in this case, defensive artillery pieces.

France has so far provided 18 155 mm Caesar guns with a range of 40 km, mounted on trucks, anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, forward armored vehicles (VAB), fuel, equipment individuals and about fifteen 155 mm TRF1 towed guns to Ukraine.

To see: War in Ukraine: French weapons on the front

Emmanuel Macron has also confirmed that France plans to deliver six additional Caesar guns to Ukraine.

Guns could be taken from an order destined for Denmark.

“We are having discussions with our Danish partners in particular to deliver Caesars, but it is a discussion which takes on certain technical aspects which is being finalized”, he said.

With AFP and Reuters 

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