Oleksii Reznikov: The role of friendly France is one of the key ones in the joint struggle against russian aggression to protect universal European values

On December 28, Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov met with his counterpart - Minister of the Armed Forces of the French Republic Sébastien Lecornu in the framework of his visit to Ukraine.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the further consolidation of efforts in repulsing the armed aggression of the russian federation and the consistent implementation of bilateral projects to strengthen the capabilities of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

Oleksii Reznikov thanked the people, the Parliament and the Government of the French Republic, and personally Sébastien Lecornu for the extensive support and assistance in defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within the internationally recognized borders. The Minister of Defense of Ukraine informed his foreign counterpart about the current situation on the war fronts and noted that Western and, in particular, French weapons were among the major factors that helped Ukraine to destroy the enemy and protect our skies from russian missiles.

"Bonjour, monsieur le Minister. I am glad to welcome the friend of Ukraine Sébastien Lecornu in Kyiv in such a difficult time for our people. This confirms that the people of France stand with Ukraine. The visit of the Minister is a practical implementation of the agreements between the Presidents of our countries and the decisions of the French Parliament in support of Ukraine. Today, we have focused on the list of priorities of Ukraine to win this war. It concerns air, missile, and anti-drone defense to protect our sky, increase of the number of heavy artillery of 155 caliber and ammunition. After all, the powerful Caesar guns used on the battlefield need high-quality shells. We also need armored vehicles to protect the personnel. In addition, we agreed to start a new training program for our Air Force officers to prepare and master the new air defense system, which will be announced later. The role of the French Republic is one of the key ones in the joint struggle against russian aggression to protect universal European values," Oleksii Reznikov emphasized.

Minister of Armed Forces of the French Republic Sébastien Lecornu commended the heroism of Ukrainian militaries and assured that France would continue to support Ukraine in its struggle for independence and restoration of territorial integrity. He stressed that it was a great honor for him and the delegation to commemorate in Kyiv the fallen Ukrainian defenders who had courageously defended their native land.

"The Ukrainian people and the Armed Forces are a true example of resilience and strength of spirit. We discussed the military needs of Ukraine for the coming weeks and 2023. France has chosen several areas to help Ukraine. First, it is the transfer of equipment from the French Armed Forces to the Ukrainian army early next year. The second area of assistance is the European Peace Facility, which is an important instrument, the strength and power of Europe to support Ukraine. France makes a large contribution to this Fund - EUR 500 million. And the third direction is a newly created fund in France, which allows Ukraine to address orders to the French military-industrial complex. Currently, there is a constant exchange of information between the armed forces of our countries. In the future, cooperation between France and Ukraine will be as effective as possible. We managed to unite the world in support of Ukraine," Sébastien Lecornu said.

He also stressed that the experience of Ukrainian defenders was important for the Armed Forces of France. Therefore, according to him, during the exercises of our military, the exchange of experience takes place, and the knowledge and skills of Ukrainian servicemen are very valuable and useful.

The parties also touched upon the issues of accounting and transparency of military assistance. Representatives of the foreign delegation were offered a briefing on the implementation of the logistics system LOGFAS, which allows to monitor the supply and movement of Western weapons and equipment to Ukraine.

Attention was also focused on the issues of rehabilitation and treatment of Ukrainian servicemen in medical institutions of France and the launch of long-term projects with French defense companies.