Macron promised to strengthen Ukraine's air defense with radars and interceptors

On September 22, French President Emmanuel Macron announced further strengthening of Ukraine’s air defense capabilities. Paris has signed a contract to supply radars and will provide Ukraine with interceptors.

 

Following a conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Macron announced the signing of the contract. However, the French leader did not specify the number of radars and interceptors, nor the timeline for their delivery.

According to Macron, strengthening Ukraine’s air defense is necessary in light of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure. He noted that such strikes pose a threat to millions of Ukrainian families, who could be left without heat or electricity.

After the meeting, Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine is also prepared to procure additional SAMP/T air defense systems and missiles for them using funds from an EU loan.

In addition, Ukraine and its partners are continuing to work on the possibility of manufacturing SAMP/T systems and their missiles directly on Ukrainian territory. According to Zelenskyy, the parties are also working on the joint FREYJA anti-ballistic missile program and expect to see the first results as early as this year.

The French president also stated that his country will support Ukraine during the winter. Furthermore, they plan to involve the G7 energy working group in this effort.

Separately, Macron reported that he had discussed support for Ukraine with U.S. President Donald Trump. Among the topics discussed were the prospect of an energy truce and a possible moratorium in the Black Sea.

France supports these initiatives, though Macron did not announce that an agreement had been reached on their implementation.

He emphasized that these issues should be part of further negotiations, which, in his words, should lead to a just and sustainable peace.

Earlier, Macron and Trump discussed an energy truce between Ukraine and Russia.

Prior to that, Burnam and Macron discussed migration, Ukraine, and trade in London.

Macron also noted an escalation of Russia’s hybrid threat.

Against this backdrop, Macron’s office indicated a possible start date for peace talks with Russia.