France and Ukraine Agree Roadmap for 16 Rafale Fighters and Licensed Missile Production

France and Ukraine agreed on a bilateral roadmap covering Kyiv's acquisition of 16 Rafale multirole fighters, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on July 13, 2026, after a meeting of the "coalition of the willing" in Paris attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the eve of the Bastille Day parade.

The first aircraft are expected to fly in Ukrainian skies in 2028 or 2029, Macron said, with training of Ukrainian pilots due to begin in the coming months. The roadmap also covers the delivery of a first batch of SAMP/T NG air-defense batteries, with complementing systems and missiles arriving in the coming weeks, alongside additional radar systems. "Ukraine has immediate needs, particularly in the anti-ballistic area," Macron said.

In a first for France, the agreement licenses the production of French-designed weapons on Ukrainian soil. Three munitions are covered: the Safran AASM Hammer guided bomb, already integrated on Ukraine's MiG-29 and Su-27 fleets; MBDA's SCALP-EG cruise missile, carried by Ukrainian Su-24 bombers; and the Aster 30 interceptor that arms the SAMP/T system.

The roadmap builds on the letter of intent signed in November 2025, under which Ukraine plans to acquire up to 100 Rafales and eight SAMP/T NG systems over roughly a decade. Financial arrangements for the 16-aircraft batch have not been finalized, and, according to Defence Industry Europe, Dassault Aviation requires advance payments before treating orders as firm. Potential funding routes include NATO members' pledges and French bank loans.

The deal marks the next step in Ukraine's transition to Western combat aircraft. According to GlobalMilitary.net data, the Ukrainian Air Force currently fields around 31 F-16 Fighting Falcons and six Mirage 2000-5Fs alongside its Soviet-era MiG-29s, Su-27s, Su-24s and Su-25s. France itself operates 146 Rafales — 105 with the Air and Space Force and 41 with the Navy — with 63 more on order.

Pilot and technician training is expected to start within months, while Paris and Kyiv work to close the financing gap and convert the roadmap into a firm contract. If the schedule holds, Ukraine's first Rafale squadron would become operational as the war with Russia approaches its seventh year.