France’s defence minister visits Kyiv to discuss further military support

KYIV - French defence minister Sebastien Lecornu visited the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Wednesday for the first time since the war began, a trip that follows a pledge by President Emmanuel Macron of France to send more weapons to Ukraine and comes as efforts to reach a peaceful settlement appear to be deadlocked.

In Kyiv, Mr Lecornu laid a wreath at a monument to Ukrainians who have died in the war. He met with his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov to discuss further military support.

Mr Lecornu said that would include a 200 million euro (S$287 million) “innovative fund” that would allow Ukraine to purchase weapons from French industrials.

The minister also met with President Volodymyr Zelensky, and they discussed cooperation and strengthening Ukraine’s air defences, according to Mr Zelensky’s nightly address.

France so far has committed about 500 million euros in military assistance, supplying Ukraine with long-range cannons, air defense missile batteries and rocket launchers.

“I am grateful to France for the already provided military assistance aimed at protecting the Ukrainian sky,” Mr Zelensky said.

Still, France lags far behind other European nations, including Britain and Germany,

whose military support adds up to billions of dollars,

according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.

Last week, after

Russia unleashed more barrages of missiles on Ukrainian cities,

Mr Macron said that France was working on sending more weapons to Ukraine early next year “so that Ukrainians can defend themselves against these bombings”.

France also hosted a major aid conference in December that involved dozens of countries and resulted in more than US$1 billion (S$1.4 billion) in aid for Ukraine to repair vital infrastructure.

But many in Ukraine and in Eastern Europe have remained critical of France’s response to the war, drawing a link between its relatively limited military support and Mr Macron’s approach to Russia.

While unequivocally backing the Ukrainian cause, Mr Macron has at times appeared sympathetic to President Vladimir Putin’s concerns over the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation alliance, saying that any peace talks should consider providing security guarantees to Russia – an approach that Ukraine strongly rejects and that has infuriated some Western allies.

Both Russia and Ukraine have said

they are open to peace talks,

but only on terms that are unacceptable to the other.

On Wednesday, the Ukranian army took AFP journalists on a tour in eastern Ukraine to see one of its French cannons in action. It was timed to coincide with Mr Lecornu’s visit.

The 155mm howitzer mounted on a six-wheeled truck chassis is highly prized for its accuracy. It is part of the arsenal of modern weaponry provided to Ukraine by multiple countries since

Mr Putin invaded on Feb 24.

Since the outbreak of the war, in addition to anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles and armoured vehicles, France has provided 18 Caesar cannons to the Kyiv army, and six to 12 more are expected.

“It would be great to have more,” said a Ukrainian soldier who gave his name as Andrei. “It’s a fast, efficient, accurate and very easy to use weapon.”

The Caesars can fire six rounds per minute and are capable of firing shells at ranges of more than 40km. NYTIMES, AFP.