Emmanuel Macron announced on Tuesday that France will send long-range missiles (so-called Scalp) to Ukraine.
“We have decided to deliver new missiles that will allow Ukraine to attack more deeply,” Macron said upon arrival at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, without specifying how many will be sent to Kiev.
“The important thing for us today is to send a message of support for Ukraine, of NATO unity and determination that Russia cannot and must not win this war,” he added.
The ‘Storm Shadow’ cruise missile, jointly developed by the UK and France and named ‘Scalp’ by the French military, is an air-launched missile with a range of over 250 kilometres, more than any other weapon supplied to Kiev by the Western countries. .
With their long range, these missiles are capable of reaching areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by Russian forces.
In May, the UK was the first country to announce that it would send long-range missiles to Ukraine. A few days later, Russia claimed to have intercepted a ‘Storm Shadow’ in the framework of the Ukraine conflict.
“[Os mísseis ‘Scalp’] it will be delivered while maintaining the clarity and consistency of our doctrine, that is, to allow Ukraine to defend its territory,” Macron explained, implicitly excluding any use to attack Russia.
According to the specialized magazine Défense et Sécurité Internationale, France has “less than 400” of these missiles.
The French president also “greeted” the agreement reached with Turkey to finalize Sweden’s accession to NATO.
In Moscow, through the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, the Russian presidency considered that sending French missiles to Kiev “is a mistake” that will force Russia to take “countermeasures” in the conflict with Ukraine.
“From our point of view, this is a wrong decision with serious consequences for Ukraine, because it will naturally force us to take countermeasures,” Peskov told reporters.
The NATO summit, which began today in Lithuania, focuses on supporting Ukraine against the Russian invasion and Sweden’s accession to the Atlantic Alliance, as well as strengthening the allies’ military assets against future threats.
Strengthening the Alliance’s deterrence and defense capabilities is one of the main themes of the summit, which brings together the 31 current members to consider a review of the military organization model and new regional plans, a plan whose relevance was strengthened by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Started in February of last year.
The summit will also serve to discuss the strengthening of investment by the allies, to respond to this plan, as well as to meet the needs of Ukraine in its war effort.
Source: TSF
