On 11 July, French President Emmanuel Macron announced during the NATO summit in Vilnius that his country had decided to provide Ukraine with missiles that would allow it to strike deep into the Russian rear.
Macron did not specify the name of the weapon, but it is likely to be a SCALP air-to-ground missile, an analogue of the Storm Shadow, as it is a Franco-British design.
This decision comes following the commitment made by the United Kingdom to provide Storm Shadow long-range missiles to the Ukrainian military on May 11, 2023.
France had previously refrained from delivering such weaponry due to concerns over the risk of their potential use on Russian territory.
“I think today what is important for us is to send a message of support to Ukraine, of NATO unity,” Macron said at the summit.
The Kremlin reacted to the announcement by calling the delivery of French long-range missiles to Ukraine a “mistake.”
“From our point of view, this is a mistaken decision, with serious consequences for the Ukrainian side, because naturally, it will force us to take countermeasures,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
The Russian Ambassador to Belgium, commenting on the rhetoric and announcements coming out of the NATO summit taking place there, said "NATO's strategy increases the risk of direct conflict between Russia and the alliance countries."
