“Any scenarios are possible”: will the West go to supply combat aircraft to Kyiv

The German authorities in the foreseeable future may think about the transfer of combat aircraft to Ukraine.

This opinion was expressed by Jan Nolte, a member of the Bundestag Defense Committee from the Alternative for Germany party, in a conversation with the Izvestia newspaper.

He recalled that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for a long time refused to transfer Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv, but eventually changed his position.

“What are the reasons to believe that combat aircraft will also not be sent?

That it will lead to further escalation?

But after all, the sending of battle tanks, which the Bundeswehr lacks, leads to it, ”Nolte emphasized.

— And yet the decision to deliver them was made.

The same may happen later with fighters, although today such a possibility is excluded.

The politician suggested that the issue of the supply of aircraft could arise in a few months.

“I can imagine that in two or three months, if the delivery of Leopard 2 does not bring the desired success, they will think about the delivery of combat aircraft.

This, of course, would be a big mistake, but I can imagine that this will happen, ”the parliamentarian said.

Open discussion

The discussion about the potential transfer of Western combat aircraft to the Kyiv regime resumed shortly after Joe Biden announced the US intention to supply American Abrams tanks to Kyiv, and Berlin announced its decision to send its Leopard 2 to Ukraine and give the go-ahead for their re-export by other countries.

A number of Western media reported that discussions began in the political and diplomatic circles of NATO about sending combat aircraft to Kyiv.

In particular, Politico wrote about this.

“Fighters will be the next logical step,” a diplomat from one of the Nordic countries is quoted in the publication.

However, the publication claims that Washington allegedly informed Kyiv that the supply of aircraft "is currently impossible."

At the same time, Politico admits that the countries of the West have previously drawn their own red lines for themselves in the issue of the supply of various weapons, which were then passed.

“Last summer, the red line passed through the HIMARS MLRS, and then moved.

Then she passed through battle tanks, but this is now changing, ”the aforementioned diplomat quotes Politico.

According to the publication's sources, the issue of the possible transfer of fighter jets to Kyiv may be raised at the next meeting of NATO defense ministers at the American Ramstein airbase in February.

In turn, the British newspaper The Telegraph, citing sources in the RAF, claims that London "considered the sending of aircraft as too escalatory a step."

“Ukraine flies on former Russian aircraft, and therefore training (in control. -

) with a Typhoon fighter will most likely take years.

The only option is for countries that have former Russian aircraft, for example Poland, to offer them (Ukraine. -

),” the source said.

• Fighter F-16

• Legion Media

• © Chris Christiaens

It is worth noting that the Slovak authorities have already expressed their readiness to discuss the transfer of their MiG-29 fighters to Kyiv, subject to the approval of such a step by NATO allies.

At the same time, the American company Lockheed Martin intends to increase the production of F-16 fighter jets in the light of the discussion about possible deliveries of aircraft to Ukraine.

This was stated by the chief operating officer of the company Frank St. John in an interview with the Financial Times.

According to him, Lockheed Martin is going to increase the production of F-16s in order to be able to replenish the stocks of any country that decides to transfer its fighters as part of military assistance to Ukraine.

At the same time, St. John stressed that the company is not involved in direct negotiations on possible deliveries of F-16s to Kyiv.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped to receive long-range aircraft and missiles from Western countries.

This requirement was criticized in France.

Florian Filippo, the leader of the Patriots movement, called it “the shortest path to the third world war” and ironically asked if the authorities were going to transfer a nuclear arsenal to Zelensky as well.

The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Dmitry Kuleba, said on the eve that some unnamed European colleagues were allegedly already working on the issue of providing F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv.

At the same time, Politico notes that if the decision to supply these aircraft to Ukraine is nevertheless made, this could become a “logistical nightmare.”

The fact is that for the transfer of F-15s and F-16s, long runways are needed, and Kyiv has problems with them.

Resolved issue

Experts and political scientists interviewed by RT believe that with the agreement on the transfer of Western-made main battle tanks to Kyiv, NATO countries have crossed a certain line and will now be more willing to coordinate the supply of increasingly sophisticated weapons, including aircraft and long-range missiles.

“At the previous meeting of the heads of defense departments of NATO countries at the Ramstein base, the discussion was devoted to the supply of tanks, after which appropriate decisions were made, despite all the talk about the danger of escalation.

The next such meeting will most likely be devoted to aviation and further opposition to Russia.

It can be expected that it will take place at the end of February, ”said Andrey Koshkin, a member of the Academy of Military Sciences of the Russian Federation.

Experts recalled that after the decision to supply Kyiv with Leopard 2, a demonstration was held in Germany against sending German tanks and weapons to Ukraine.

In Munich, hundreds of residents took to the streets in protest and gathered in the central square of the city. 

Also, according to a survey by the German edition of Der Spiegel, published on January 26, about 63% of German residents oppose sending fighters to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

But the opinion of German citizens is unlikely to influence the decisions of official Berlin, analysts believe.

• Fighter F-16

• AFP

• © FADEL SENNA

In the future, NATO countries are likely to discuss the potential shipment of long-range missiles to Kyiv, with the help of which Ukrainian forces will be able to strike at the territory of the Russian Federation, Andrei Koshkin believes.

“It is difficult to imagine the consequences of such a step,” he stated.

A similar position is shared by Alexei Mukhin, director general of the Center for Political Information, who believes that the collective West has removed all internal restrictions on the supply of weapons and military equipment to the Kyiv regime.

“The West will now definitely give Ukraine any help it asks for.

NATO countries are confident that they run Kyiv and hold all the levers in their hands, but it seems that it is Ukraine that controls the West.

This is a big problem for Western countries, because they do not fully understand what the consequences of this dependence can be, ”the political scientist said.

Against the background of the transfer of the main battle tanks of NATO countries to Kyiv, as well as an open discussion about the potential supply of combat aircraft, it can be concluded that all statements by Western leaders that they want to avoid escalation are made to divert attention, Mukhin added.

“Western leaders are already accustomed to lying directly to the eye and trying to pass off wishful thinking.

Therefore, statements that NATO is not a party to the conflict and that the West will not transfer certain weapons to Kyiv are made in order to mislead the Russian side.

At the current level of relations between Russia and the countries of the West, any scenarios, even the most depressing, are now possible on the issue of arms supplies, ”RT’s interlocutor concluded.