War

One thousand three hundred and sixty-third day. Zelensky and Macron signed a “historic agreement”: France will supply Ukraine with 100 Rafale fighter jets

Since February 24, 2022, Meduza has been broadcasting live about the Russian-Ukrainian war. We publish your letters in our daily materials because we are sure that we need to continue talking about the war.

For more than a week, a corruption scandal has been ongoing in Ukraine, the main person involved in which is Timur Mindich, co-owner of the Kvartal 95 studio and an ally of Vladimir Zelensky. The president himself is also criticized, who wanted to limit the powers of anti-corruption bodies (but then reversed his decision). In recent months, about a third of Ukrainians have expressed distrust in him. How has your personal attitude towards Zelensky changed since the beginning of the war? In what ways do you support him and in what ways do you not? We ask all our readers, and first of all, Ukrainian ones, to respond. Find the feedback form at the end of this article. A review of the previous day can be read here .

Ukraine

President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky arrived in France and met with Emmanuel Macron. Right on the tarmac at Villacoublay airbase near Paris, they signed a declaration of intent in the field of defense. The day before, Zelensky himself announced this agreement as “historic.”

The main point of the agreement, which runs until 2035, is the supply of 100 Rafale fighter jets. It is not yet clear how and by whom these supplies will be financed. Reuters, citing sources, writes that some aircraft may be transferred directly from France's existing reserves.

In addition to the Rafale, Zelensky said on social networks, the parties agreed on the supply of SAMP/T air defense systems produced jointly by France and Italy, radars for them, as well as air-to-air missiles. Also, Ukraine and France, according to Zelensky, will begin joint production of interceptor drones this year.

After signing the agreement, Zelensky and Macron visited the headquarters of the “coalition of the willing,” an alliance created in the spring on the initiative of France and Great Britain and designed to ensure uninterrupted assistance to Ukraine in conditions when the United States is increasingly distancing itself from the war, and in the European Union the positions of supporters of reducing support for Kyiv are strengthening.

At a press conference, Macron called Ukraine “Europe’s first line of defense” and emphasized that assistance to the Ukrainian army from European countries ensures “security for all of us.”

After Paris, Zelensky will head to Madrid. The details of his visit to Spain, which will be the second since the start of the great war between Russia and Ukraine, have not yet been disclosed.

A month ago, Zelensky signed a declaration of intent, which provides for the supply of 100 to 150 Swedish Gripen fighter jets to Ukraine. Deliveries are planned for several years. Zelensky hopes that the first planes will arrive in Ukraine in 2026. It is still unclear who will pay for the supplies; Swedish authorities have not ruled out that this could be done through the use of frozen Russian assets.

Reuters sources note that the agreements on the supply of Rafale and Gripen were concluded as part of Kiev’s long-term strategy to increase its fleet of military aircraft to 250 units. Now, according to rough estimates, Ukraine has only a few dozen combat-ready aircraft.

War through the eyes of Meduza readers

How we choose letters

Meduza's readers live in different countries and have different attitudes towards the war. We publish your letters to see this event through your eyes. Our editors try to present all points of view, even if they do not coincide with the editorial position. However, in accordance with the Meduza code, we do not publish messages that contain “hate speech,” justify the murder of civilians, or express direct support for an aggressive war.

Nick (UAE/Russia) . I did not meet the beginning of the war in Russia. Which, frankly speaking, I am very happy about: I remember my emotions very well and understand that if I were in Russia, I would go to the center and attack the first cop breaking up the rally. And now, after torture and extracting testimony, I would be in prison.

At first everything seemed black and white - I was jubilant when Ukraine won victories near Kiev, in the Kharkov region, and Kherson. Something broke in me after the attacks on Belgorod and the invasion of the Kursk region. I understood that it was we who brought war and destruction to Ukraine, but the sight of cities in my country burning turned out to be much stronger than this rational understanding, anger at ourselves, our country and sympathy for the Ukrainians.

I in no way wish Putin to win, and I really hope for a blood clot or that the presidential security officer will blow his mind and empty his clip. But the problem is that war is a monster that cannot be controlled. Once he breaks free, he will not stop until he destroys everything around him, kills everyone, and drinks all the blood. And therefore, I cannot be sure that the Ukrainian forces, having begun to win, will not decide to go further - to Kursk, Rostov, Belgorod - or will not decide to raze these cities to the ground. And so I can no longer wish for the defeat of the Russian army - no matter how much I hated it three years ago. And towards my friends who donate to the needs of the Russian army, I no longer feel the anger and disgust that I had back in 2023.

All these thoughts have been driving me crazy for the past year, about as much as in the first months of the war. I really want to reach an agreement - as I think everyone does […].

I also thought about the inhabitants of Nazi Germany, not fooled by propaganda, and compared their experience with myself and the Russians. And I caught myself with a monstrous thought that now I perfectly understand those Germans who were never Nazis or Hitlerists, but joined the Volkssturm when the anti-Hitler coalition broke through to the borders of Germany. I don’t know what I will do if hostilities approach the internationally recognized borders of Russia.

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