PARIS (AP) — France will keep providing military intelligence to Ukraine after Washington announced it was freezing the sharing of information with Kyiv, French defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said Thursday.
WATCH: U.S. suspends intelligence sharing with Ukraine, officials say
The U.S. said Wednesday it had paused its intelligence sharing with Ukraine, cutting off the flow of vital information that has helped the war-torn nation target Russian invaders, but Trump administration officials have said that positive talks between Washington and Kyiv mean it may only be a short suspension.
American intelligence is vital for Ukraine to track Russian troop movements and select targets.
Speaking to France Inter radio on Thursday, Lecornu said France is continuing its intelligence sharing.
"Our intelligence is sovereign," Lecornu said. "We have intelligence that we allow Ukraine to benefit from."
Lecornu's office later said the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine is not a novelty but "a continuity of service."
Lecornu added that following the U.S. decision to suspend all military aid to Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron asked him to "accelerate the various French aid packages" to make up for the lack of American assistance.
Lecornu said that in the wake of the U.S. decision, shipments of Ukraine-bound aid departing from Poland had been suspended, adding however that "Ukrainians, unfortunately, have learned to fight this war for three years now and know how to stockpile."