France and Italy will supply the MAMBA medium-range ground defense system this spring to help Ukraine “defend itself against attacks by Russian drones, missiles and aircraft”, the French defense ministry said on Friday, AFP reported.

French anti-aircraft complex MAMBAPhoto: Thomas SAMSON / AFP / Profimedia

“The provision of such a system is a response to the urgency expressed by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov to his French and Italian colleagues regarding the protection of the civilian population and infrastructure from Russian airstrikes,” the ministry added.

French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu and Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto spoke by phone on Friday to finalize the delivery, which has been under discussion for weeks.

“The ministers completed technical discussions (…) regarding the delivery of the SAMP/T – MAMBA air defense system to Ukraine in the spring of 2023. This is the first European Franco-Italian long-range anti-missile complex. design,” the ministry said.

The announcement followed Reznikov’s visit to Paris this week.

Ukraine has been calling for months to strengthen its air-to-ground defenses, especially after a wave of Russian attacks on its critical infrastructure using Iranian drones.

MAMBA is also in Romania

MAMBA – the equivalent of the American Patriot system – is already deployed in Romania to protect the highly strategic port of Constanța, located on the Black Sea.

Thanks to this system, with its radar and launchers armed with eight Aster missiles with a range of about 100 km, “we can counter a wide range of air threats: short-range ballistic missiles, fighter jets, helicopters, drones and even multiple … fire volley missiles” , a French military official told AFP in Romania in December.

France has already announced on Tuesday the delivery of twelve additional 155mm Caesar guns in the coming weeks, bringing Kiev to a total of 49, “a considerable number”, Sebastien Lecornu said.

The Ground Master 200 (GM200) radar manufactured by the French company Thales was also promised. This medium-range radar can detect enemy aircraft at a distance of 250 km and engage them at a distance of 100 km, whether they are flying at low speed and altitude, like drones, or at high altitude, like fighter jets.

It also provides protection against rocket and artillery fire, alerting ground troops to enemy fire, says its manufacturer, which has sold more than 60 units worldwide. It can be transported by truck.

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