PARIS, Feb 6 (Reuters) - France on Thursday delivered

its first batch of warplanes to Ukraine as part of European

efforts to strengthen Kyiv's hand in its war with Russia and

show Paris' commitment as the United States mulls its support to

Ukraine.

President Emmanuel Macron last June vowed to train Ukrainian

pilots to fly Dassault-made Mirage 2000 fighter jets, crossing a

new line in military support to Kyiv.

"With Ukrainian pilots on board who have been trained for

several months in France, they will now participate in defending

the skies of Ukraine," Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu wrote

on social media platform X.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed on X that:

"The first Mirage 2000 jets from France have arrived, adding to

our air defence capabilities".

Officials said that for security reasons Paris would not say

how many warplanes had been delivered, although the planes had

been adapted to enable strikes on the ground.

The plane, which has been replaced by the Rafale fighter jet

in the French fleet, was initially conceived for air dogfights.

Ukraine has repeatedly pressed Western allies to supply it

with increasingly sophisticated arms and ammunition, including

armoured vehicles, tanks, long-range missiles and U.S.-made F-16

fighters.

The first F-16 jets arrived in Ukraine in 2024, although

their impact on the war has been limited by the strength of

Russia's air force.

"We are also continuing to expand our F-16 fleet," Zelenskiy

wrote.

The Mirage 2000 is a multi-role, single-engine jet fighter.

A French parliamentary report at the end of 2024 said that

of the 26 Mirage 2000-5 in the French airforce, six would be

given to Ukraine.

France will host on February 12 a meeting with Ukraine, its

main European allies, Britain and the United States to discuss

how to strengthen support to Kyiv.