According to a parliamentary report presented to the French Assemblée Nationale's Defense and Armed Forces Committee on Wednesday, November 8, the cost of France's military support to Ukraine has reached €3.2 billion, an unprecedented figure. This amount places France among the leading European countries, alongside Germany and the United Kingdom. "Our country has contributed to giving Ukraine the means to stand firm against the Russian army," asserted its rapporteurs, Lionel Royer-Perreaut (from Macron's Renaissance party) and Christophe Naegelen (from diverse centrist group LIOT).
Since Russian troops invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, France has handed over a large amount of military equipment to Kyiv's forces: 30 Caesar cannons, several dozen armored personnel carriers (VAB) and AMX-10 RC armored reconnaissance vehicles, 15 155 mm TRF1 howitzers, around a hundred Mistral surface-to-air missiles, two unitary rocket launchers, two Crotale anti-aircraft missile batteries, several dozen Storm Shadow air-surface and Milan anti-tank guided missiles, Zodiac Futura boats, a SAMP/T anti-aircraft missile system, etc. Bullet-proof vests, night-vision goggles and helmets were also among the equipment delivered.
According to the report, the total value of these amounted to €1.7 billion. This estimation does not represent the price of the equipment sent to Ukraine, a difficult exercise given the age of some of them, but the budgetary cost of replacing them in the French army's arsenals. This pricing method is a choice that automatically inflates the bill, but one that was accepted by the lawmakers, for whom this figure "is the one that best reflects France's effort, by valuing the current cost of replacing the equipment sold." A delivered AMX-10 RC was thus valued at the price of a more recent Griffon or Jaguar armored vehicle.
Training provided by the French army for Ukrainian troops was valued at €300 million. This amount takes into account the land combat training programs provided by the French military in Poland and on French territory, from which 7,000 Ukrainian soldiers are due to benefit in 2023. It also includes training in the use and maintenance of transferred equipment, a "specificity" appreciated by the Ukrainians. "France, with its long military experience, [...] has chosen to avoid 'straight' deliveries, always accompanying the delivery of its equipment with the elements necessary for its full operational effectiveness," said the rapporteurs.
You have 45% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.