France to give $211m to Ukraine, backed by frozen Russian assets

With tensions high between president Trump and president Zelensky and the freezing of US aid to Ukraine, France is stepping up support to Kyiv.

Paris will give €195 million ($211 million) in military aid to Ukraine using interest from frozen Russian assets, French defense minister Sebastien Lecornu said according to Anadolu Ajansi on March 9th.

Lecornu told French newspaper La Tribune on March 8th that the new aid package will support the delivery of 155-mm artillery shells and AASM gliding bombs to be used by Ukrainian Mirage 2000 aircraft.

He added that Paris is also expediting the transfer of older military equipment, including tanks and armored vehicles, to Ukraine.

This follows a pledge in October 2024 by the Group of Seven (G7) nations to offer around $50 billion in loans to Ukraine, backed by revenue generated from frozen Russian assets.

These remarks also follow shortly after the UK reached a similar agreement with Kyiv on March 1st to provide a $2.84 billion loan for defense purchases, which was also backed by frozen Russian assets.

Around $300 billion in Russian assets have been frozen by western countries since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Most of these funds remain inaccessible, however, with around $3.2 billion annually available in interest to fund initiatives like this French one.

Anadolu Ajansi