This weekend France has belatedly made clear that it has joined allies Britain and US in authorizing Ukraine to use long-range missile for strikes on targets in Russian territory.

The past week has witnessed significant escalation after Ukraine used both UK-made Storm Shadow missiles and US-supplied ATACMS in at least two separate cross-border assaults. And now:

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told the BBC that Ukraine can shoot French longer-range missiles into Russia in the "logics of self-defense." The French Scalp missiles are the same as the UK's Storm Shadow missiles, which Ukraine had already used in attacks on Russia.

French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, via Reuters

"The principle has been set... our messages to President Zelensky have been well received," he said in the Saturday interview, however without disclosing whether French Scalp missiles have already been used in such a way.

He argued that the Western allies should not put any limits on supporting Ukraine's effort fighting back Russia. He called for the West to "not set and express red lines."

After saying this, he was then pressed by interviewer Laura Kuenssberg over if that could even mean sending French troops into the war. "We do not discard any option," he responded.

The top French diplomat continued, "We will support Ukraine as intensely and as long as necessary. Why? Because it is our security that is at stake. Each time the Russian army progresses by one square kilometer, the threat gets one square kilometer closer to Europe."

On the question of Zelensky's push to join NATO, Barrot strongly hinted that Paris considers it as a possibility: "We are open to extending an invitation, and so in our discussions with friends and allies, and friends and allies of Ukraine, we are working to get them to closer to our positions," he said.

"Of course we will have to spend more if we want to do more, and I think that we have to face these new challenges," he said of broader French and European defense spending.

The Kremlin's response to all of this was swift, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova declaring that FM Barrot's comments are "not support for Ukraine, but rather a death knell for Ukraine." 

🚨🇫🇷FRANCE AUTHORIZES UKRAINE TO STRIKE RUSSIA WITH FRENCH MISSILES

France declared Ukraine has the right to defend itself, including using French SCALP missiles, against Russia.

“There’s no red line,” said a French spokesperson, reinforcing support for Ukraine’s strikes on… pic.twitter.com/c1ktZv339i

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) November 23, 2024

Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine have continued exchanging drones over each other's territory at an intense pace. "Ukraine's air force said that at least 73 Russian attack drones entered the country's airspace on Saturday into Sunday morning, after a week in which both sides made battlefield history with new advanced weapons systems," ABC reports.

And Russia's defense ministry said during the same period its military downed a reported 36 Ukrainian drones. Russia further described that in Ukraine it targeted "military airfields, production facilities and storage sites for drones, as well as concentrations of enemy manpower and military equipment."