France and Italy will not buy US weapons for Ukraine – Politico, La Stampa

France and Italy will not participate in the scheme for supplying American weapons to Ukraine through NATO, which was announced by the US President. Donald Trump and the Secretary General of NATO Mark Rutte July 14. This was reported by... Politico citing two French officials and La Stampa citing representatives of the Italian government.

According to sources speaking to Politico, the President of France Emmanuel Macron refused to participate in the scheme, believing that Europeans should build their own defense industry base through local procurement.

In addition, the French government is trying to increase its own defense spending against the backdrop of a large budget deficit.

In Italy, the lack of financial resources is also cited as one of the main reasons for refusing to participate in the scheme for supplying American weapons to Ukraine, reports La Stampa.

"Italy practically has no financial space for such an operation. So much so that the only arms purchases by Italy from the United States are the old batch of F-35s, which are planned for the next decade," the publication's sources said.

It is noted that Italy's refusal is not intended to distance itself from the United States or their support for Ukraine, but rather is an invitation to find other ways to satisfy Trump's needs.

According to media reports, the only official request currently made by the Alliance to European countries concerns their willingness to handle the logistics of transporting weapons provided by the United States to Ukraine.

• During his meeting with the NATO Secretary General, Trump stated that the Alliance and the States... They have reached an agreement on the supply of weapons to Ukraine at the expense of Europe.The American president clarified that the US would not pay for this weaponry, but would only produce it.