Click to see full-size image
Minister of the Armed Forces of France Sébastien Lecornu confirmed that France supplied the Armed Forces of Ukraine with a batch of 155-mm howitzers TRF1 which were written off the French Army.
According to the French Ministry of Defense, a large amount of military equipment has already been delivered to Ukraine, “covering the entire range of needs of Ukrainians.”
The supplies from France reportedly include anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, as well as “six 155-millimeter towed TRF1 howitzers, 18 CAESAR artillery installations, two Crotale systems,” as well as armored personnel carriers and multiple rocket launchers.
As for the TRF1s, the total number of howitzers that should be supplied to the Ukrainian military was not revealed but the first six systems are already in service with the AFU.
TRF1 is a French 155 mm self—propelled gun produced by GIAT. It can move independently at a speed of 8 km/h. 8 servicemen (gunner, commander, 2 chargers, charger operator, 2 correct, driver) are needed for its operation. The firing range is 24 km with conventional shells, the rate of fire is 6 rounds / minute.
Their transfer to Ukraine was announced in September. It was reported that the French military department bought them from the S2M-Equipment (former OMAT) company. In its turn, S2M-Equipment had bought 15 TRF1s after they were decommissioned from the French Army.
From 1984 to 1993, the GIAT association (now Nexter Systems) supplied 106 TRF1 guns to the French Army, of which only 13 units were in service with the French military until recently. According to open sources, 12 of them were in service with the French units in Djibouti. In April 2022, the unit reportedly sent the last four TRF1 howitzers for storage.
In France, TRF1 howitzers were replaced by CAESAR self-propelled artillery systems.
Click to see full-size image
Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron promised Zelensky to supply an additional batch of CAESAR self-propelled howitzers in addition to the eighteen that are already in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, a lot of them were already destroyed by Russian forces, and were put out of service by unprofessional Ukrainian soldiers.
Unlike the first CAESARs transferred from the French army, the new ones were first planned to be sent to the Danish army, but the Danes decided that Ukraine “needs them more.” In total, Kiev will receive 6 new self-propelled guns, delivery dates were not disclosed.
French media reported that about 20 Bastion armored personnel carriers will also be sent to Ukraine.
However, the military aid from France is not enough for the Kiev regime. On December 12, the head of the Ukrainian government, Denis Shmygal, called on the French authorities to supply French Leclerc tanks to the AFU.
