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France is supplying Milan anti-tank missiles and Caesar guns to Ukraine to help it face the Russian invasion, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with West France released this Friday.
France will supply heavy weapons to the Ukrainians. And not just any one: Caesar cannons and Milan anti-tank missiles.
The Caesar is the flagship of the French artillery. This 155mm artillery piece with a range of 40 kilometers mounted on a truck has no equivalent within NATO. He worked miracles in Afghanistan or in 2017 during the recapture of Mosul in Iraq.
Five men are enough to maneuver it, and when an observer at the front identifies a target, all he has to do is scan it with a laser pointer to automatically relay the precise coordinates. Then there is nothing left to do, a Caesar can fire six rounds per minute and then set off again to avoid the counter battery fire.
No precision on the number of guns delivered
Until now, Paris had refrained from specifying the types of armaments delivered to Kiev, admitting only in mid-April “ 100 million euros in equipment donations already made » and the announcement of the delivery of « complementary military capabilities †
† We deliver † substantial equipment, from Milan to Caesar through various types of armament Emmanuel Macron confirmed to West France who asked him about the supply of heavy weapons from Europe to Ukraine. † I think we should continue down this road. With always a red line that should not enter into conflict he added.
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The Élysée has not stated the number of weapons delivered, but the delivery is in full swing, it is said, and they will be working with their ammunition in a few days.
† The Milan is old equipment and we already knew that they had supplied some to the Ukrainians. As for the Caesars, they are very accurate, highly effective weapons that will be able to change things on the ground at least locally, analyzes Oliver Kempf, associate researcher at the Foundation for Strategic Research. What’s interesting is that this is modern equipment, not old Russian planes 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 years old. It’s a modern weapon that currently equips the French army, so yes, it’s something good quality †
About 40 Ukrainian soldiers are also to be trained in their handling in France from Saturday, the presidency added without further details. To date, the French army has 76 examples of this artillery piece, which could prove very effective in the battle of Donbass.
