PARIS (Reuters) – Ukraine has bought six Caesar howitzers, France’s defence minister said on Thursday, adding that Paris would send 50 precision-guided missiles a month to Kyiv to aid its fight against Russia’s invasion.
Speaking to France Inter radio, Sebastien Lecornu said Caesar manufacturer Nexter had managed to half the production time of the howitzer to 15 months meaning that some 78 units would be available this year.
In Ukraine’s first purchase of French-made weapons since the start of the war, Lecornu said Kyiv had bought six for between 3 to 4 million euros ($3.26 to $4.35 million) each and France was now approaching allies to purchase the rest. Ukraine currently has 49 Caesar self-propelled howitzers gifted by France and Denmark.
“We want to share the bill and enable European countries to share the financial burden,” Lecornu said.
Ukraine’s defence minister had been due in Paris on Thursday for a conference on improving artillery supplies to Kyiv, but the visit was cancelled at the last minute.
President Emmanuel Macron will head to Ukraine in February to finalise a deal under which Paris would deliver more sophisticated weaponry, including long-range cruise missiles, and provide long-term political, aid and reconstruction commitments.
Europeans would ramp up their support for Ukraine in the coming weeks, Macron said on Tuesday, so it could continue to defend itself, nearly two years on from Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Lecornu said France would also deliver about 50 precision-guided A2SM missiles per month to Ukraine from January, adapted for Soviet-type planes.
The Safran-made missiles can carry bombs ranging from 125, 250, 500 and 1,000 kilogrammes.
The minister also said France would also start producing from this year 3,000 155 mm shells a month, around 36,000 a year, up from just 2,000 in 2023.
Ukrainian officials say they use between 5,000-15,000 shells a day.
($1 = 0.9193 euros)
(Reporting by John Irish; Editing by Ros Russell)
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