LRUs have arrived in Ukraine.
Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov posted a photo on Twitter of a unitary rocket launcher on Tuesday, warmly thanking France.
Paris has promised the delivery of two systems.
The Ukrainian army is “
now more powerful
”, rejoiced the minister without obviously revealing anything about the positions taken by the LRU.
Due to its ability to strike "
in depth
" at a range of 70 km, the unitary rocket launcher belongs to the crucial armaments for the Ukrainian forces at the same rank as the American HIMARS.
Gunners can thus hit Russian supply chains or their rear bases, or hit the front while being out of range of counter-battery fire.
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French aid is not limited to the LRU.
France also delivered Caesar guns and 155 mm howitzers.
The promised Crotale air defense systems are also on their way to the battlefield: two batteries have been announced.
Along with artillery and ammunition, missile defense is another emergency for Ukraine, which is subject to massive bombardments against its civilian infrastructure.
Paris is also studying the sending of radar detection systems.
If Paris is decried for the relative weakness of its material support to Ukraine, the French government insists on the consistency of promises and deliveries.
Other supporters have announced many armaments but have not yet provided them, it is noted.
"
What we promise, we really deliver
," said Sébastien Lecornu in October.
Before the Senate, he had also shown realism: "
We are not making transfers that would put the French nation in danger
", he had warned before adding in a burst of sincerity: "
We do it with the pragmatism which leads us to look at the reality of our stocks, but also the reality of the advice given to us by our generals
".
France had only 13 LRUs.
There is no question of yielding others for the moment.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: tricked, Russian missiles destroy wooden rocket launchers
The weakness of the French artillery capacities limits the possibility of possible future deliveries.
France is paying the price for its past budgetary choices.
Until now, "
the army had preferred a logic of effect to be achieved rather than a capability approach
", explains a military source.
Understand: the air superiority, supposedly acquired, was to make it possible to achieve objectives beyond the front line.
But the war in Ukraine has demonstrated the fragility of the approach: the war takes place there on the ground, with the air force playing only a marginal role.
“
The war in Ukraine shows how deep fires are growing
“, underlined the chief of staff Thierry Burkhard in a hearing before the Senate.
The replacement of LRUs within the Army was planned for 2030.
