Ukrainian and French defense firms will receive $23 million in grants under the Brave France initiative. The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Eurosatory 2026 defense exhibition in Paris by French Defence Innovation Agency (AID) Director Patrick Aufort and Brave1 Chief Operating Officer Iryna Zabolotna. According to mod.gov.ua, a Letter of Intent on joint weapons production in Ukraine and France was signed by Mykhailo Fedorov and Catherine Vautrin in Kyiv, and this document is said to pave the way for major joint defence industry projects. France informed Ukraine about preparations to deliver additional Mirage aircraft, according to mod.gov.ua. Ukraine and France aligned on key defence cooperation priorities and discussed funding sources for joint defence projects, including European Union credit financing and the SAFE programme, according to mod.gov.ua.

France will finance military equipment and ammunition for Ukraine using 300 million euros ($324 million) of interest from Russia’s frozen assets, according to thedefensepost.com. The equipment includes 12 Caesar self-propelled howitzers, 155mm artillery ammunition, Aster surface-to-air missiles, Mistral man-portable anti-aircraft systems, and AASM guided bombs. By the end of 2024 alone, France will have returned 300 million euros from interest on frozen Russian assets, according to thedefensepost.com. However, France’s military aid to Ukraine in 2024 is set to fall short of the 3 billion euros ($3.25 billion) pledged earlier this year, according to thedefensepost.com. The shortfall is attributed to the need to reduce France’s budget deficit, which could reach 6 percent of GDP in 2024, according to thedefensepost.com. France has provided 1.7 billion euros ($1.84 billion) in military aid to Ukraine, according to thedefensepost.com.

Ukraine’s defense industrial base has evolved into a pillar of Europe’s future security and Ukraine’s postwar economy, according to cfr.org. Ukraine’s innovative defense sector—especially in drones, autonomy, electronic warfare, and battlefield software—will require capital, certification, and integration into European and NATO procurement ecosystems if it hopes to scale beyond Ukraine, according to cfr.org. Some European countries have developed a promising path forward: coproduction models, where Ukrainian firms develop and manufacture arms at facilities elsewhere in Europe, according to cfr.org.