Home › Politics › Would France's Mirage jets change Ukraine's skies?
Would France's Mirage jets change Ukraine's skies?
Summary
A look back at the French announcement of fighter aircraft for Ukraine and the Russian warning about French instructors.
What did France promise Ukraine in the days around 7 June 2024? On 6 June 2024, President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would send Dassault Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft to Ukraine and train its pilots by the end of 2024.
The announcement came two days after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov issued a warning on 4 June 2024. He said French military instructors would be "legitimate targets" if they were deployed to Ukraine.
The two statements placed France's military aid to Ukraine alongside a sharpened exchange between Paris and Moscow. The Mirage pledge covered both aircraft and pilot training, with the stated deadline of the end of 2024.
