Speaking on national television, the French leader said that the move was not intended to escalate the war but to help Ukraine defend itself.

He declined to specify how many jets would be sent but said details would follow on Friday, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Paris.

Macron told the broadcaster: “We’ll be launching a new cooperation program and announcing the transfer of Mirage 2000-5s French fighter jets that will enable Ukraine to protect its soil and airspace.

“From tomorrow, we’re going to launch a pilot training program, followed by the transfer of these aircraft.

“The key factor is pilot training time, and so we’re going to propose to President Zelenskyy that pilots be trained as early as this summer—it normally takes five to six months—so that by the end of the year they’ll be able to fly these aircraft.”

He added that France would also equip and train a brigade of 4,500 Ukrainian soldiers, and that France and its allies are considering training soldiers on Ukrainian soil.

The president said: “Is this something that is an escalation factor? The answer is no.

“Going to train someone in the western zone, which is a free area of Ukraine, is not aggressive towards Russia.”