France vows support for Ukraine’s plan to end Russian invasion

The connection is being considered by Ukraine’s Western partners, whose assistance is captious for Kyiv to defy its bigger neighbour. A cardinal constituent would beryllium a ceremonial invitation into NATO, which Western backers person been reluctant to see until aft the warfare ends.

“A Russian triumph would beryllium a consecration for the instrumentality of the strongest and would propulsion the planetary bid toward chaos,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said astatine a associated quality league with Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha. “That is wherefore our exchanges should let america to marque advancement connected President Zelenskyy’s triumph program and rally the top fig imaginable of countries astir it.”

Since Russia launched a full-scale penetration connected February 24, 2022, France has been 1 of Ukraine’s staunchest military, diplomatic and economical supporters successful Europe, and is grooming and equipping what volition go a afloat caller brigade of Ukrainian soldiers for front-line deployment.

Zelenskyy said Saturday that helium expects that the brigade would beryllium successful Ukraine by the extremity of November. “Brigade grooming is going up of schedule,” helium said.

French President Emmanuel Macron has besides antecedently pushed for a argumentation displacement from Ukraine’s Western allies that could alteration the complexion of the warfare — allowing Kyiv to onslaught subject bases wrong Russia with blase long-range weapons provided by Western partners, which see missiles from France.

Barrot besides announced that France would present the archetypal batch of Mirage 2000 combat jets to Ukraine successful the archetypal 3 months of 2025, with Ukrainian pilots and mechanics besides trained to alert and support them.

“By resisting against the invader with exceptional courage, you are not lone warring for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, but you are besides holding a beforehand enactment that separates Europe from Vladimir Putin’s Russia, that separates state from oppression,” the French curate said successful Kyiv.

Russia and Ukraine speech POWs Barrot’s sojourn coincided with a captive swap betwixt Russia and Ukraine precocious Friday that included 190 prisoners of warfare traded by the 2 sides nether a woody negotiated by the United Arab Emirates.

Among the 95 Ukrainians were 34 Azov fighters who defended Mariupol and the Azovstal steelworks, the fortress-like works successful the now-occupied metropolis of Mariupol wherever their last-ditch basal became a awesome of absorption against Moscow’s invasion.

“Ninety-five of our radical are location again. These are the warriors who defended Mariupol and Azovstal,’ arsenic good arsenic the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Kherson regions,” Zelenskyy posted connected X.

The caput of the Azov Brigade, Denys Prokopenko, said connected Facebook that 34 Azov fighters had been returned, but that different 900 remained successful Russian captivity.

A well-known Ukrainian quality rights activistic and work member, Maksym Butkevych, was besides among the 95 exchanged. His merchandise was announced by the ZMINA Human Rights Centre, the organisation that helium co-founded.

The swap follows the repatriation of 501 dormant soldiers to Ukraine connected Friday successful what appeared to beryllium the biggest repatriation of warfare dormant since the full-scale penetration began.

Most of the soldiers were killed successful enactment successful the eastbound Donetsk portion of Ukraine, mostly astir the metropolis of Avdiivka, which Russian forces captured successful February aft a agelong and gruelling battle, Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said successful a statement.

Russia besides received the bodies of 89 of its soldiers, Russian lawmaker Shamsayil Saraliyev told reporters.

Elsewhere, the Russian Defence said that it changeable down 16 Ukrainian drones implicit Russia’s Bryansk, Rostov, and Belgorod regions successful aboriginal Saturday.

Local societal media channels shared images that appeared to amusement a blaze astatine a microelectronics mill successful the Bryansk region. Russian authorities didn’t corroborate the strike.

More than 100 Russian drones and missiles were besides launched implicit Ukraine overnight, with 98 drones and six guided aerial missiles sighted implicit the country, the Ukrainian aerial unit said. It said that it had changeable down 42 of the drones and 46 much had disappeared from radar. Four missiles were besides changeable down, officials said. They didn’t specify the destiny of the remaining drones oregon missiles.