German Chancellor and French Prime Minister promise further military support to Ukraine

Tuesday, 6 February 2024

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal held a meeting in Berlin to discuss continuing military support for Ukraine and strengthening defence cooperation.

As reported by DPA, the head of the German government reiterated his call for continued military support for Kyiv. At the same time, his French counterpart said that Paris would continue to support Ukraine financially and provide technical and military equipment.

"I am very strongly in favour of the United States and Europe, as well as all European member states, making such a significant contribution that the Russian president’s (Vladimir Putin) plan to wait out (the West) will not work," Scholz said.

Attal noted the importance of the quality of the weapons supplied to Ukraine.

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"It must meet the highest necessary standards so that Ukrainians can protect themselves," Attal said, recalling that Paris supplied Kyiv with long-range Scalp cruise missiles.

The parties also expressed optimism about two joint defence programmes currently being developed: the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and the Main Ground Combat System (MGCS).

"I want to make it clear that I see that both projects are making significant progress and that cooperation between our two countries is very intensive," Scholz said.

The MGCS is the successor to the German Leopard and the French Leclerc main battle tanks, which are due to enter service within the next decade. The FCAS is due to enter service in 2040 and replace Eurofighter fighters.

This year, Germany planned the largest bilateral contribution among the EU countries for military assistance to Kyiv – almost €8 billion.

Earlier, Scholz said that European countries are not doing enough to support Ukraine in the war with Russia.

Earlier, it was reported that France would be able to provide the Ukrainian army with 3,000 155-mm projectiles every month.

In addition, Paris plans to produce 78 Caesar howitzers for Ukraine, six of which will be delivered soon.

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