France to supply Ukraine with Mirage 2000 jets and train pilots, announces President Macron
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced that France will provide Ukraine with Mirage 2000 fighter jets, reports France24.
Macron noted that France would also take responsibility for training Ukrainian pilots to operate these aircraft. The training sessions will be held in France.
"Tomorrow, we will initiate a new cooperation programme and announce the delivery of Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets — a fleet of French warplanes that will enable Ukraine to defend its land and airspace. Starting tomorrow, we will launch a pilot training programme and aim to deliver these aircraft by the end of the year," Macron stated.
He did not specify the exact number of jets to be supplied. The training programme for Ukrainian pilots is expected to start this summer.
"We believe it will take about five to six months to train them here in France, so they are ready by the end of the year," Macron added.
Additionally, the French President declared his intention to establish a "French brigade" of Ukrainian soldiers, with France taking on the task of training and equipping 4,500 Ukrainian recruits.
In September 2023, the then-spokesperson for the Air Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Yuri Ignat, said that French Mirage 2000 aircraft would not completely fulfil Ukraine’s aviation needs.
However, in January 2024, the Commander of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Nikolai Oleschuk, did not rule out the possibility that the combat capabilities of Su-24M bombers could be enhanced by the Mirage-2000D.
"Of course, we will not immediately abandon Soviet aircraft. Therefore, alongside the F-16s, MiG-29s will still be operational, and it is possible that the combat capabilities of Su-24M bombers will be strengthened by the Mirage-2000D, and the Su-25 attack aircraft by the A-10 Thunderbolt II," Oleschuk wrote in a Telegram post.