France will continue to send weapons to Ukraine, a French diplomatic source said on Monday at a closed briefing for journalists, saying there was currently little prospect of near-term peace talks to resolve the conflict.
The diplomatic source at the off record briefing said that negotiations could not be ruled out and highlighted France’s constructive role in facilitating talks to send monitors to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, currently occupied by Russian forces, as evidence of the importance of dialogue.
The remarks come after French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that he wanted “Russia to be defeated in Ukraine”, but did not want “a total defeat of Russia, attacking Russia on its own soil”.
On Saturday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told the Munich Security Conference that Nato must send weapons to give Ukraine a “decisive advantage on the battlefield”.
US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday in a further sign of hardening resolve among Nato allies to continue supporting Ukraine.
The source said that continued Russian mobilisation of forces, continuing Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure and aggressive rhetoric showed that Moscow was currently not willing to discuss peace.
Subsequently, there was “no taboo” when it came to discussing different weapon systems that could be sent, but that deliveries would be tailored to Ukraine’s immediate needs.
On Sunday, President Vladimir Putin said military operations would continue, accusing the West of being disinterested in peace.
The French defence ministry said at the weekend that AMX-10 light tanks, pledged in January, could be in Ukraine as soon as this week. This meant that the donated vehicles would have one of the fastest turnaround times for any system being pledged and arriving in the combat theatre.
Asked by The National if France would consider sending Leclerc tanks, more powerful than the AMX-10, the source said France had been working on meeting Ukraine's immediate needs on the ground, which includes agile equipment on the front lines.
The Leclerc is considered by some defence analysts to be one of best tanks in the world, featuring armour that contains lightweight titanium and explosive plates to deflect shell impacts.
In addition to the fast moving, wheeled AMX-10, which also carries a powerful 105mm gun, France has sent the Caesar mobile artillery system.
The diplomatic source said the ministry and some defence analysts are concerned that sending too many systems could create logistical problems for Ukrainian forces.
“One of the criteria we've been considering when delivering equipment to Ukraine is the actual efficiency and the utility for Ukraine on the ground. And when it comes to having too much different equipment, it creates a lot of logistical problems for the Ukrainian forces. It also increases the training costs and difficulties for them.”
“So there's no taboo, we are considering everything. But so far the priority is more on the AMX and on the artillery and air defence systems,” the source said.
Ukraine has come under sustained attack in recent months from hundreds of Iran-made one way attack drones known as Shahed 136s and Nato countries, including France, have rushed to send air defence systems to protect vital civilian infrastructure.
In December, France sent Croatale air defence missile systems to Ukraine, joining the US and Germany who also sent ground to air missile defence systems last year. The US has sent advanced Patriot air defence systems as well as the Norway-US developed NASAMS system, while Germany has donated the IRIS-T air defence system.
