France will deliver "hundreds" of old but "still functional" armored vehicles and Aster missiles to Ukraine, as part of a new aid package for kyiv in its war against Russia, according to its Minister of the Armed Forces .
“To hold such a large front line, the Ukrainian army needs, for example, our armored front vehicles (VAB, editor’s note): this is absolutely key for the mobility of the troops,” explained Sébastien Lecornu in a interview with La Tribune published Saturday evening.
“This old equipment, still operational, will be able to directly benefit Ukraine in significant quantities. We can talk about hundreds of them for 2024 and early 2025,” he added.
The famous VAB armored personnel carriers, more than 40 years old, are being replaced in the French Army by the new generation Griffon armored vehicles.
Responding to pressing requests from kyiv to strengthen its anti-aircraft defense capabilities, Paris will also "unlock a new batch of Aster 30 missiles" for the SAMP/T MAMBA device, the equivalent of the American Patriot.
“We are also developing remotely operated munitions in a very short time frame, to deliver them to the Ukrainians this summer,” added the minister.
On Tuesday, Sébastien Lecornu indicated that he would not rule out resorting to requisitions or requiring manufacturers to give priority to military needs over civilian needs, to accelerate production.
Intensification of Russian strikes
This announcement comes as Russia has significantly intensified its air attacks on kyiv territory in recent weeks, claiming to be acting in retaliation for kyiv's attacks in its border regions.
Last night, a strike killed at least one person in the Lviv region (west), the regional governor said, with kyiv's army saying it had shot down nine missiles and nine enemy drones.
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“Tonight, the enemy attacked with cruise missiles the same essential infrastructure (...) which was previously targeted on March 24 and 29. An administrative building was damaged,” Governor Maksym Kozytsky said on Telegram , without specifying what type of infrastructure it was.
Ukrainian operator Ukrenergo said on Sunday that the Russian army had again struck energy infrastructure overnight. “They targeted high voltage substations (...) in the southern regions,” said this source.
Due to the damage, emergency power cuts were imposed in the city of Odessa and surrounding areas, Ukrenergo said.
Earlier on Sunday, the Ukrainian Air Force announced that it had shot down nine cruise missiles and nine Russian Shahed explosive drones during the nighttime bombings.
On Friday, Russia carried out massive bombings against Ukraine's electricity grid, seriously damaging at least three thermal power plants and prompting Ukrainian authorities to temporarily impose emergency cuts in seven regions.
Faced with these bombings, kyiv is asking its Western allies to send it more aid, in particular anti-aircraft defense systems.
With AFP
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