France aids Ukraine missile, drone development

France is expanding its military support to Ukraine beyond supplying weapons like cruise missiles and fighter jets by assisting Ukrainian companies in developing and improving missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). A meeting was held in Paris last week between representatives of the European defense concern MBDA and about 30 Ukrainian companies, including Vyriya, Skyfall, and Mowa Defense, to discuss this cooperation. The partnership focuses on Ukraine's flagship cruise missile, the Flamingo, with MBDA supplying key components such as navigation systems. Additionally, a new medium-range missile is reportedly being developed in secret and will soon be demonstrated to President Zelensky, while France is also testing its own analog of the FP-5 missile in the conflict with Russia.