PARIS: France will send €300 million (US$337.56 million) in aid to Ukraine, President Emmanuel Macron(pix) announced on Friday, reported Xinhua.
The announcement of the funding came in a letter from Macron to the French National Assembly, in which he stressed France's support for Ukraine.
“We are also in contact with the Ukrainian authorities to provide them with the defensive equipment they need,“ Macron said in his letter, which was read to the parliament by the President of the National Assembly, Richard Ferrand.
“The EU (European Union) must become a more sovereign power in energy, technology and military matters,“ Macron wrote, adding that measures will be taken “in order to protect our nationals and our companies”.
Also on Friday, French minister for the economy Bruno Le Maire announced that under EU sanctions, Russian political and economic personalities owning property on French territory would be identified and blocked.
“France will block the access of these personalities to all of their property,“ Le Maire said.
“These sanctions will allow us to cut access for Russia to international funding,“ he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday he was aware that the West was trying to “blackmail” Russia again with sanctions, but said he believed that sanctions would continue just because Russia exists, regardless of the situation in Ukraine.-Bernama