PM: France pledges over $1 billion to boost Ukraine’s defence with arms, joint production

French Prime Minister François Bayrou’s office has announced that France will provide Ukraine with up to 1.5 billion euros ($1.7 billion) in financial guarantees to facilitate defence procurement from French companies and support joint military production initiatives.

The commitment was made following a meeting in Paris between Bayrou and Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media. 

The aid package is designed to deepen cooperation between the two countries' defence industries and promote long-term industrial and technological partnerships. 

“France will establish a financial guarantee package of up to 1.5 billion euros for Ukraine, aimed at further engaging French companies in the defence sector and fostering long-term partnerships to strengthen production and technological innovation capacities in both countries,” the Hôtel Matignon said in an official communiqué.

In addition to the defence support, France has also pledged to create a recovery fund beginning in 2026 to assist with the reconstruction of Ukraine’s infrastructure, which has suffered extensive damage during the ongoing conflict with Russia. 

In late May, French Minister for the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu announced that Paris would provide Kyiv with additional Caesar howitzers and other weaponry worth 200 million euros. Earlier, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and the United States no longer impose restrictions on the range of weapons which are supplied to Ukraine. As a result, Kyiv is now permitted to carry out long-range strikes on military infrastructure within Russian territory.

By Naila Huseynova