France will soon be able to deliver 78 Caesar howitzers to Ukraine and will increase the supply of shells to meet Kyiv's urgent needs for ammunition to fight a full-scale Russian invasion. This was stated by French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu, UNN reports with reference to AP.
Lecorneuil said at a press conference that France, Ukraine and Denmark had reached an agreement to finance the self-propelled 155-mm Caesar howitzers, which will allow France to "quickly deliver" them.
According to him, France has also set a goal to supply Ukraine with 80,000 rounds of ammunition for 155-mm guns this year, up from 30,000 supplied since the start of the war on February 24, 2022.
In addition, Lecornu said, France is involved in attempts to identify existing stockpiles of gunpowder and ammunition that could be purchased from countries outside the European Union, a plan initiated by the Czech Republic to further support Kyiv.
According to the plan, the Czechs are seeking to obtain 800,000 artillery shells for Ukraine. The Czech leadership has previously stated that the first shells should be delivered to Ukraine no later than June. According to officials in Prague, at least 18 countries have joined the initiative.
Earlier this month, Germany, France, and Poland pledged to buy Kyiv more weapons and increase production of military equipment, promising that Ukraine could rely on the trio of European powers to help it overcome its military resource shortfall.
Lecorneu argued that European countries should reduce their dependence on the United States to ensure the continent's security. He said he expects this issue to become a campaign topic before the European Parliament elections in June.
"We know that part of Europe's security agenda must now fall to Europeans," Lecorneuil said. "This is an absolute necessity.
"To me... it's not right that U.S. taxpayers should pay so much for the security of Europeans," he said.
Lecorneuil's comments come at a time when many in Europe have expressed concern that Donald Trump's potential return to the White House would weaken the NATO alliance following his remarks in which he threatened not to defend allies in the event of an attack by Russia.