Exclusive flight-tracking material obtained by AnewZ has raised new questions about French military aircraft movements linked to President Emmanuel Macron’s recent diplomacy with Armenia and the wider scope of France’s defence cooperation with Yerevan.
French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Armenia was presented as a diplomatic milestone.
According to Le Figaro, Macron’s visit to Yerevan centred on a strategic partnership with Armenia. Defence cooperation was already part of that picture, with Armenia’s 2024 order of 36 French-made Caesar howitzers.
But exclusive material obtained by AnewZ raises questions that go beyond the public partnership.
The question is whether diplomacy was moving alongside a deeper military track.
AnewZ has exclusively obtained ADS-B flight-tracking material showing F-UJCS, an Airbus A330-200 of the French Air and Space Force, flying towards Yerevan on May 4. The next day, the aircraft left Yerevan for Paris. Hours later, it flew from Paris to Istres-Le Tubé, a French military air base near Marseille.
The records do not prove what was on board. But they raise a broader logistics question about whether this was only official transport after the visit, or part of a wider military support chain operating alongside France’s expanding defence relationship with Armenia.
The same aircraft also appears earlier in separate tracking material linked to Japan and South Korea. Screenshots reviewed by AnewZ show F-UJCS, callsign CTM021, moving east from Europe on March 28, then appearing around South Korea and Japan on March 29, April 2 and April 3.
That timing matters. Macron’s Asia tour ran from March 31 to April 3. In Japan, French and Japanese defence ministers signed the Japan-France Defense Roadmap on April 1. In South Korea, Macron and President Lee Jae Myung agreed on April 3 to deepen cooperation, including in defence and energy.
Again, this proves movement, not cargo. But it places the aircraft within a wider pattern of defence-linked diplomacy.
Then came the A400M file.
A tracking image from May 11 shows a French military A400M, callsign CTM2025, moving eastwards towards the South Caucasus. According to the claim being examined by AnewZ, cargo linked to this route was declared to Georgia as gas cylinders, lithium batteries and chemical substances.
The key question is whether the actual cargo was different, possibly Caesar-related components, assemblies or support equipment.
That question became sharper after Caesar howitzers appeared in footage from Yerevan ahead of Armenia’s May 28 Republic Day parade. Public reporting says Armenia signed a 2024 contract for 36 Caesar systems, while recent footage from Armenia showed the systems during parade preparations.
If those systems are displayed publicly, they are no longer only part of a contract. They become a visible military reality on the ground.
The legal issue is also significant.
Under the 1944 Chicago Convention, civilian and military aircraft operate under different legal regimes. If military cargo was moved under a misleading declaration, it would raise questions about airspace permission, transit approval and the integrity of civil aviation rules.
For now, there is no final proof. The public record shows partnership. The exclusive flight records obtained by AnewZ show movement. The footage shows Caesar systems in Armenia. The cargo claim still requires verification.
The key documents remain the A400M manifest, Georgia’s transit permission, ICAO compliance records and independent confirmation of what was actually on board.
READ MORE:
Saudi Arabia said its overnight strikes on Iran-backed group targets in Iraq were carried out in self-defence and warned it would take further militar...
A fire involving two gas vessels at Egypt's Damietta port has prompted conflicting reports over whether the incident was caused by a drone strike or a...
Pakistan has declared hepatitis C a national emergency and launched a nationwide campaign to screen more than 164 million people, as it steps up effor...
French DJ and electropop musician Kavinsky, whose atmospheric sound shaped a generation of electronic music fans, has died at the age of 50, French authorities said on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia said its overnight strikes on Iran-backed group targets in Iraq were carried out in self-defence and warned it would take further military action if the groups launched new attacks against the kingdom.
Yemen warned the Houthis were seeking to replicate Iran's Strait of Hormuz strategy in the Red Sea, as U.S. President Donald Trump said there was a "good chance" of a deal with Tehran but warned strikes could resume if talks failed.
Moscow should stop linking Russia-Armenia relations to Azerbaijan, Baku's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aykhan Hajizada has said, after Russia again raised the Collective Security Treaty Organisation's role during the former Garabagh conflict.
Pakistani businesses are warning that growing difficulties in obtaining United Arab Emirates (UAE) visas are disrupting trade, delaying investment and limiting access to a key export market, despite both Islamabad and Abu Dhabi saying there is no official visa ban.
A fire involving two gas vessels at Egypt's Damietta port has prompted conflicting reports over whether the incident was caused by a drone strike or an onboard technical fault. Egyptian authorities said there were no casualties.
Pakistan has declared hepatitis C a national emergency and launched a nationwide campaign to screen more than 164 million people, as it steps up efforts to eliminate one of the world's largest hepatitis C burdens by 2030.
Afghan refugees in Pakistan are delaying or avoiding medical treatment because they fear arrest under the country's deportation policy, leading to preventable illnesses including child malnutrition and pregnancy complications, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
Kyrgyzstan is in talks with Russia over monthly supplies of 100,000 tonnes of petroleum products as Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries continue to disrupt fuel exports, forcing the Central Asian country to seek alternative sources.
Türkiye and Iraq have signed five agreements aimed at expanding cooperation in transport, infrastructure, education, youth, sports and industrial development. The deals were announced after talks between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi in Ankara.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment