France and Germany to provide Ukraine with additional military aid within the framework of the signed security agreements.
On Friday, Zelensky signed 10-year bilateral defence agreements with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin and French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris that are aimed at boosting support for Ukraine
Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky have signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement that will remain in force until Ukraine joins NATO, Macron said at a joint press conference in Paris. He went on to explain that “France committed to an additional military aid up to €3 billion ($3.23 billion) in 2024.”
Zelensky, for his part, thanked France for its support and called the agreement ambitious and concrete: “I am sure these accords in Europe will help the process along in the US by encouraging [lawmakers] to prioritise aid to Ukraine rather than electoral considerations.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also announced an additional military aid package worth €1.13 billion over four years, including 36 self-propelled howitzers, 120,000 rounds of artillery ammunition, two Skynex air defense systems and additional missiles for the IRIS-T air defense system.
Germany will also lead allied efforts to equip Ukraine with modern air defence equipment, and will participate in other “coalitions” by providing armour, artillery, information technology and drones.
The Europeans will not be able to compensate for the shortfall in US deliveries of artillery ammunition and air defence interceptors this year.
