New aid package
\n PARIS
\nFrance\u2019s defense minister said Paris would deliver \u201chundreds\u201d of armored personnel carriers and anti-aircraft missiles as part a new aid package to Ukraine in its war against Russian invaders.
\n\u201cTo hold such as extensive front line, the Ukrainian army needs for example our VAB vehicles: it\u2019s absolutely essential for troop mobility,\u201d Sebastien Lecornu told La Tribune newspaper in an interview published late Saturday.
\nFrance is currently phasing out its VAB fleet \u2014 some of them more than 40 years old \u2014 with new Griffon armored vehicles, but Lecornu said the older models were \u201cstill operational.\u201d
\n\u201cWe\u2019re talking about hundreds of them for 2024 and early 2025,\u201d he said.
\nParis will also supply more Aster 30 anti-aircraft missiles for SAMP\/T launchers, similar to the US-supplied Patriot air defense systems.
\n\u201cWe are also developing remotely operated munitions in a very short timeframe, to deliver them to Ukraine starting this summer,\u201d Lecornu added.
\nThe French government is pushing defense companies to ramp up production to meet the needs of its own army and to ensure continued support to Ukraine after more than two years of war with Russia.
\nKyiv has warned its stocks of munitions are running low, urging in particular Washington to end a political standoff that has frozen a new $60 billion aid package.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New aid package PARIS France\u2019s defense minister said Paris would deliver \u201chundreds\u201d of armored personnel carriers and anti-aircraft missiles as part a new aid package to Ukraine in its war against Russian invaders. \u201cTo hold such as extensive front line, the Ukrainian army needs for example our VAB vehicles: it\u2019s absolutely essential for troop mobility,\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":397655,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-397641","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n