Four days, four countries: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited some of his main European partners during a whirlwind tour that ended on Monday in Britain, after Italy, Germany and France. Zelensky met his counterparts in his now customary sweater and fatigues pants to keep up the media and political pressure on countries likely to provide Kyiv with material and financial aid. The Ukrainian President returned home declaring that he had obtained “new and powerful weapons for the front”.
Ukraine has been in the midst of a communication operation for weeks and maintains a vague scientist on the potential imminence of a vast counter-offensive, carried out with Western equipment received during the winter. In the vicinity of Bakhmout in particular, where the battle has been raging for months, Ukrainian troops have taken over a dozen Russian positions without managing to break through the front. Kyiv is asking for even more hardware to achieve this.
In Rome, Volodymyr Zelensky was able to meet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who reaffirmed her country’s “full support” for Kyiv. The Ukrainian president then exchanged with the pope at the Vatican, before flying to Germany. Berlin made announcements the day before he even arrived in the country. In particular, Germany said that it would deliver various armored vehicles, drones and four other Iris-T air defense systems with their missiles. Ukraine had already received at least two of these systems, appreciated for their quality.
On the tank side, which constitute the bulk of kyiv’s requests, Berlin announced the delivery of 30 additional Leopard 1A5s. These tanks are of an older generation than the Leopard 2 currently in service, and Germany (with the help of Denmark and the Netherlands) had already claimed to be delivering around 100 of them in early 2023. All donors Europeans combined, around 50 Leopard 2s have been transferred to Ukraine to date, with no further announcements. Added to this are 18 towed 155 mm guns and the ammunition to go with it. On the financial level, Berlin has communicated a plan of 2.7 billion euros in support of kyiv (including the delivery of equipment).
After Germany, Volodymyr Zelensky flew to Paris, where he spent the evening with Emmanuel Macron. The joint declaration of the two presidents, confirmed during the interview with the French president the next day on TF1, mentions future arms deliveries without much precision. Emmanuel Macron said France would equip the Ukrainian battalions it is training in Poland at the rate of 600 per month.
This equipment would be composed of armored vehicles of an unspecified type, supposedly VABs currently withdrawn from service by the hundreds in the French army. AMX 10 RC reconnaissance vehicles (cannon wheels) are also mentioned, France having already donated at least 14 copies. Regarding these announcements, no volume other than “tens” of armored vehicles to equip “several battalions” has been specified. For anti-aircraft defense, Emmanuel Macron has made it the main axis of aid to Ukraine, but, again, the material to be delivered is unknown. France has ceded at least two Crotale short-range systems, Mistral missiles and a Samp-T system comparable to the German Iris-T, in cooperation with Italy.
With President Zelensky tonight, we took stock of Ukraine’s operational needs to deal with Russian aggression. As long as necessary, France will continue to provide political, financial, humanitarian and military support…
Ukraine strongly requests that Westerners deliver fighter planes to it, but still comes up against the refusal of the Americans, and of all the countries visited during this tour, including France. Emmanuel Macron, however, opened a breach by declaring during his interview that France would train Ukrainian pilots, potentially with its European partners wishing it. However, no details were given on the nature, duration or type of training in question.
If it were indeed piloting, such an announcement would pave the way for the delivery of French aircraft since the formations are very specific depending on the model of aircraft. It should be noted that Paris already regularly trains Ukrainian pilots… in survival in the event of ejection from their cockpit. Pilot training, whatever it is, could start “right now”, according to Emmanuel Macron.
In London, the Ukrainian President’s last stop, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that the United Kingdom would provide new long-range strike capabilities (missiles and drones), in addition to the Storm Shadow missiles whose transfer was recently announced. Rishi Sunak also opened the door to training Ukrainian pilots this summer, adding that London would play “a key role” in the political fight to deliver fighter jets to Kiev.
Consult our file: War in Ukraine
