France supplied Ukraine with arms worth €640 million in 2022
28 July, 2023 Caesar ACS of the 55th Artillery Brigade. May 2022. Photo credits: the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The French Ministry of Defense reported on the transfer of arms to Ukraine in the amount of EUR640 million for 2022. La Tribune reported on this. The report also mentions the free transfer of some armored vehicles and ammunition.
This list includes 60 VAB armored vehicles, 24 155-mm artillery installations (it regards CAESAR self-propelled guns or TRF1 howitzers), 10 units of 120-mm RT 120 mortars, 118 missiles of unknown purpose, and two artillery launchers for them (perhaps it regards LRU MLRS).
Some of the weapons were transferred by France.
In addition, the French government provided free of charge 34 7.62 mm machine guns, 562 12.7 mm machine guns, and 704 ATGMs and their launchers. Ukraine last year also ordered 15 155-mm caliber artillery systems, as well as 20 submachine guns. "The arms deliveries to Ukraine today are particularly noticeable because they materialize qualitatively and quantitatively the efforts of France and its partners to help the attacked state to defend itself legally, in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter.
They are mainly based on transfers of equipment from our armies," said Sebastien Lecornu, Minister of the Armed Forces of France. Ukraine also placed an order for EUR118.6 million in French weapons. The French government has created an international fund of EUR200 million to support Ukraine, which facilitates and accelerates the equipping of Ukrainian troops directly with French weapons.
Renault Trucks D220 truck for the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the EU.
June 2022. Photo credits: EU Service for Foreign Policy Instrument
Additionally, since the beginning of the war, the French government has increased the number of licenses issued to Ukraine from 26 in 2021 to 242 in 2022. Licenses were issued mainly for 40 mm ammunition worth EUR800 million.
In particular, EUR514 million went for missiles and bombs, EUR110 million for armored vehicles, EUR125 million for electronic equipment, EUR261 million for software, and EUR212.7 million for technology. As Militarnyi previously reported, Ukraine ordered the supply of a large number of cases of 155-mm artillery ammunition from France. According to the French newspaper, on June 13, the Forges de Tarbes plant received an order for the supply of 60,000 cases intended for the production of 155 mm shells, which will be delivered in 2024.
According to the media, the agreement was signed with a Ukrainian company that is part of the Ukrainian Defense Industry State Concern (known as Ukroboronprom before the reorganization).