Kyiv says France to send military instructors 'soon'
France will "soon" send the first military instructors to Ukraine to train Ukrainian soldiers, who are retreating in the face of Russian offensives, particularly in the Kharkiv region, the commander of the Ukrainian army announced today.
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"I welcome the initiative of France to send instructors to Ukraine to train Ukrainian military personnel. I have already signed documents that will allow the first French instructors to soon be deployed to our training centers and familiarize themselves with the infrastructure and personnel," General Oleksandr Syrsky wrote on Telegram.
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Contacted by AFP, the French Defense Ministry said only that the issue was being studied, without confirming the deployment of instructors.
"As has been said several times, training on Ukrainian territory is one of the options discussed since the conference on support for Ukraine that the President of the Republic [Emmanuel Macron] convened on February 26," the ministry said.
"This possibility remains the subject of work with the Ukrainians," it added.
Meanwhile, on a visit to Madrid, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday called on the West to "use all means" to force Russia into peace.
"We must intensify our joint work with our partners to achieve, as a priority, security and effective coercion of Russia into peace by all means," Zelensky urged during a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.
The Kyiv leader also stressed the need "to put pressure not only on Russia, but also on our partners so that they provide us with the ability to defend ourselves," and demanded new anti-aircraft missile defense systems to intercept the more than 3,000 guided bombs that Russia launches at Ukrainian targets each month.
Less than three weeks before a peace summit on Ukraine promoted by Kyiv and due to take place in Switzerland, Zelensky also rejected a proposal by China and Brazil to invite Russia, considering that it would "block everything."
Faced with difficulties on the ground, Ukraine has been demanding for months the possibility of striking positions, rear bases and Russian infrastructure on Russian territory with Western weapons. An option so far rejected by the Americans and Europeans for fear of escalation.
However, this issue remains under debate among the allies.
During a NATO meeting in Sofia on Thursday, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said it was "time to reconsider" the use of weapons supplied to Ukraine, which has "its hands tied."
On Sunday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her opposition to the use of Western weapons supplied to Ukraine against targets on Russian territory. "We need to be very cautious," she said.
On the other hand, during a trip to Kyiv in early May, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that Ukrainians could use British weapons as they saw fit, referring to their "right" to strike Russian territory, a situation that has already occurred on several occasions.
On Thursday, when asked about this issue, Pedro Sánchez evasively stated that he did not have "that will."
"We will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," the prime minister repeated.
Sánchez announced a military aid package to Ukraine of more than one billion euros, and while Kyiv continues to ask for Patriot missile systems or tanks, arguing that it currently has only a quarter of the resources it needs.
Ukraine has secured substantial financial and military aid from its Western allies since Russia invaded the country on February 24, 2022.
Kyiv's allies have also imposed sanctions on key sectors of the Russian economy in an attempt to diminish Moscow's ability to finance the war effort in Ukraine.
Now in its third year of war, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been facing a shortage of weapons and ammunition, despite repeated promises of aid from Western allies that have reportedly been exceeded.
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