France to send old armored vehicles, new missiles to Ukraine
France will deliver hundreds of old armored vehicles and new surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine in its war against Russia, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Sunday, Reuters reports.
In an interview with La Tribune Dimanche, Lecornu said that President Emmanuel Macron, following talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, had asked him to prepare a new aid package, including old but still functional French equipment.
"The Ukrainian army needs to defend a very long front line, which requires armored vehicles; this is absolutely crucial for troop mobility and is part of the Ukrainian requests," he said.
He said France looked to provide hundreds of VAB (Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé) front-line troop carriers in 2024 and early 2025.
France's army is gradually replacing its thousands of VABs, which first went into operation in the late 1970s, with a new multi-role troop carrier.
Lecornu added that France was also preparing to release a new batch of Aster 30 surface-to-air missiles for the SAMP/T system provided to Kyiv.
The Aster 30 can intercept warplanes, drones and cruise missiles within a range of 120 km.
