According to France‘s Minister of Defense, the upgrades will include improving their air-to ground combat capabilities and electronic war systems.
According to Sud Ouest, French Defense Minister Sebastien lecornu has stated that France plans to deliver its promised Mirage 2000 fighters in Ukraine during the first half 2025.
Ukraine is currently relying on its small fleet of aging Mig-29 fighters and Su-24 Bombers from the Soviet era to fight Russia. Ukraine began receiving its first F-16s recently, in an effort to improve Ukrainian air capability. France has also pledged to provide Ukraine with its Mirage 2000 aircraft. Ukraine has also been in talks with Sweden and Eurofighter fighters.
Lecornu announced that the fighter jets will be equipped with new system at the Cazaux Base in Gironde.
He explained, “We are equipping the troops with air-to ground combat capabilities and strengthening their electronics warfare system.”
The Defense Minister stressed that although the aircraft upgrades are important but the most crucial aspect of the training of Ukrainian mechanics and pilots is currently underway in Nancy (France).
When asked previously about the number of Mirage fighters Paris will provide and what other countries may join this military assistance effort, French President Emmanuel Macron responded: “I won’t give you the quantity nor the partners nor the exact figure simply to be effective.”
Mirage 2000 was a single-engine supersonic fighter aircraft with a delta-shaped wing that served as the main fighter for the French Air Force from the mid-1980s onwards. The Mirage 2000 was phased out in the early 2000s when the twin-engine Rafale aircraft began to arrive in significant numbers. Military experts have noted that the Mirage 2000 can carry SCALP and Storm Shadow rockets, which France and the UK supplied to Ukraine, as well guided bombs and could significantly increase Ukraine’s aircraft fleet.
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