France is preparing the ground to offer Dassault Rafale jets to Ukraine as replacement for the ageing MiG-29 fighters.
The offer is expected to be placed during an upcoming official visit to Kyiv of French President Emmanuel Macron. The dates of the tour have not been announced yet but French Ambassador to Ukraine Etienne de Poncins said in February 2021 to Interfax-Ukraine, “my expectation is that this visit could occur by the end of the first semester (of 2021).”
In May 2020, Kiev adopted the “Air Force Vision 2035” plan in order to modernize its combat aviation by bringing it up to NATO standards. In accordance with this, a tender is expected to be called to supply 4.5 generation multirole combat aircraft interoperable with NATO military assets.
The Ukrainian defence ministry has proposed an investment of approximately 7.5 billion Euros to buy new fighter jets. The plan is to acquire 6 to 12 new combat aircraft between 2023 and 2025 and 30 aircraft in the 2025-2030 timeframe.