Ukraine, France agree on Rafale jets and missile production
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- Ukraine agreed on a plan to acquire 16 Rafale fighter jets from France with accompanying weapon systems, French President Emmanuel Macron announced after a meeting of Ukraine-supporting countries in Paris.
- Macron and Zelenskyy agreed on a bilateral roadmap covering a first batch of SAMP/T NG air-defense batteries, radar systems, and additional missiles for delivery in coming weeks.
- France approved licensing agreements allowing production in Ukraine of the AASM glide-bomb kit, the Aster 30 air-defense interceptor, and the SCALP/Storm Shadow cruise missile.
- Nine countries — including France, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Norway — joined Ukraine in a "Freyja" coalition to develop an anti-ballistic system centered on an interceptor from Ukrainian defense firm Fire Point.
- First Rafale jets are expected in Ukrainian skies as early as 2028 or 2029, with Ukrainian pilot training to begin in coming months, Macron said.
- Ukraine previously signed letters of intent for up to 100 Rafale jets (November) and up to 150 Saab Gripen jets (October), and is already operating F-16s primarily to shoot down Russian cruise missiles and Shahed attack drones.
Why it matters: France's roadmap layers licensed local production of Aster 30, AASM, and SCALP/Storm Shadow over immediate hardware deliveries, giving Ukraine a near-term path to backfill its missile-interceptor gap — a need Macron called "immediate" — while the Trump-licensed Patriot production line cannot come online for years.
