France increases military aid to Ukraine with more tanks
France will be sending tanks to Ukraine in an effort to expand its military aid, French President Emmanuel Macron told his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“The president wished to amplify this military aid,” announced the presidency after a one-hour telephone call between the two leaders, AFP reported, a week after Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s trip to Ukraine.
These AMX-10 RC, very mobile, reconnaissance-fire were put into service in the 1980s and used during the Gulf War, in Kosovo, and the Sahel.
On 20 December, France announced it had delivered rocket launchers and Crotale missile batteries to Ukraine.
“This is the first time that tanks of Western design have been supplied to the Ukrainian armed forces,” the presidency said.
According to the Defense Ministry, France had 247 of these tanks in 2019. Paris and Kyiv will soon exchange to define the number and delivery modalities.
On Wednesday, the French president told his counterpart of France’s “unwavering support” “until victory.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he is cooperating “to significantly strengthen air defence and other defence capabilities” before thanking his French counterpart for the tanks.
