Ukraine can use French SCALP missiles into Russia “in self-defense,” hints FM Barrot

Ukraine could fire French long-range missiles into Russia “in the logics of self-defense,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told the BBC. When asked if Ukraine had already conducted such strikes, Barrot declined to confirm whether this had occurred.

Barrot’s comments come during a week marked by significant escalation in Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces using British and American long-range missiles to strike Russian territory for the first time. Russia responded by launching what it claimed was a new type of missile at Ukraine, while Putin raised the specter of a potential global war.

The escalation was underscored by Ukraine’s strike on a Russian command bunker in Kursk Oblast using British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles. Putin cited this incident as justification for Russia’s subsequent ballistic missile strike on Dnipro.

France provides Ukraine with SCALP cruise missiles, the French equivalent of Britain’s Storm Shadow. Ukrainian and Western sources have confirmed the Kursk command center strike.

Speaking with BBC after Friday’s talks in London with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, Barrot dismissed the notion of “red lines” limiting Western support for Ukraine. When pressed about President Macron’s earlier suggestions of potential French troop involvement—which other Western leaders did not endorse—Barrot stated, “We are not ruling out any options.”

On NATO membership, Barrot indicated growing support for Ukraine’s bid: “We are open to extending an invitation and are working with allies to build consensus around our position.”

A British government source described the current moment as a “crunch point” ahead of winter and Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

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