Ukraine orders 100 Rafale jets from France - media
Ukraine has just placed a historic order for 100 Rafale aircraft to equip its army, French TF1-LCI reported, citing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy immediately after the contract was signed.
TF1-LCI notes that French President Emmanuel Macron met Volodymyr Zelenskyy this morning at the Villacoublay air base (Yvelines) before signing an arms deal that the Ukrainian president called "historic" to "strengthen" Ukraine’s combat aviation and air defense.
In particular, the manufacturers presented Zelenskyy with the French Rafale fighter and its weapons, the next-generation SAMP-T air defense system, and several drone systems. This will be followed by the signing of a "letter of intent," the exact content of which has not been disclosed.
According to the French presidency, the goal is to "put French experience in the arms industry at the service of Ukraine’s defense" and "enable it to acquire the systems necessary to respond to Russian aggression."
