France is reportedly stepping up its intelligence assistance to Kiev after the Trump-ordered pause in all US intelligence-sharing this week, which was triggered by President Zelensky’s resistance to signing a minerals deal, as well as last Friday’s row involving the Ukrainian leader.
French defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu confirmed efforts to fill the gap, saying, “Our intelligence is sovereign” and that “We have intelligence that we allow Ukraine to benefit from.”
Lecornu revealed that French President Emmanuel Macron asked him to “accelerate the various French aid packages” to make up for the halt in American assistance.
As we highlighted earlier, inbound US shipments of military and transport plans had literally turned around midflight as Trump’s order came down Monday, per USA Today:
After the order was given, all U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine came to a stop, as of 6 p.m. on Monday evening, according to a defense official. Planes carrying supplies en route to Ukraine would have had to turn around, the official said.
French defense chief Lecornu also in his comments confirmed that shipments of Ukraine-bound aid departing from Poland had been suspended, and offered as an aside that “Ukrainians, unfortunately, have learned to fight this war for three years now and know how to stockpile.”
As for intelligence-sharing, it’s also expected that other European agencies will step up help in the wake of the American withdrawal.
The US had for years helped Ukraine’s military with tracking and targeting Russian troop movements and major targets. However, the Kremlin warned the whole time of its ‘red lines’ – especially Western assistance to long-range missile strikes on Russian territory.
The suspension of U.S. intelligence sharing with Ukraine is “selective” – Kyiv has been denied data needed for deep strikes deep inside Russia.
Source: Sky News pic.twitter.com/Vei4mNAHe8
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 5, 2025
On Wednesday a source speaking with Sky News said that in the beginning US intelligence was still trickling to Kiev on a selective bases, but later confirmed, “A few hours ago, the exchange of all information was stopped.”
CIA director John Ratcliffe called the suspension a “pause” – while national security adviser Mike Waltz said Washington had “taken a step back” regarding this close relationship with Kiev. But yesterday in a televised speech Macron took a very hawkish tone, claiming that Putin threatens all of Europe and that France is mulling extending its nuclear umbrella across the European continent.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 03/07/2025 – 04:15
