France and Australia to jointly produce artillery shells for Ukraine

France and Australia announced on Monday that they would collaborate on a multi-million dollar project to produce artillery shells for Ukraine, CNN reported.

“Several thousand 155-millimeter shells are going to be manufactured in common, with an unprecedented partnership between Australia and France,” said Sébastien Lecornu, Defense Minister of France, at a press conference in Paris.

According to Lecornu, the French arms company Nexter will partner with Australian companies, which will provide the powder for the shells.

“This forms part of the ongoing level of support that both France and Australia are providing Ukraine to make sure that Ukraine is able to stay in this conflict and be able to see it concluded on its own terms,” Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles added.

CNN points out that neither minister would specify quantities beyond “several thousand” artillery shells, but they indicated this would be a long-term collaboration.