Playing for time: how the situation with possible deliveries of Western fighters to Ukraine is developing

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin neither confirmed nor denied Washington's readiness to send F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv.

Answering a relevant question, he only stated the intention of the United States to maintain support for the Ukrainian side.

“We are focused on providing Ukraine with all the means it needs in order to be effective (on the battlefield. -

) during the expected spring counteroffensive.

We are doing our best to supply them with everything they need right now to effectively fight.

As you know, we talked about artillery and air defense systems.

We have put a lot of effort into providing more armored vehicles.

All this is now playing its part.

In addition, we are stepping up efforts to train Ukrainian military personnel,” Austin said.

Open question 

Earlier, US President Joe Biden said that Washington does not plan to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.

Shortly thereafter, the Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland, Wojciech Skurkiewicz, said that the possible transfer of such aircraft from the Polish Air Force to Kyiv was not discussed at the official level.

Similar statements about the supply of fighter jets were made by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

At the same time, the American media, citing sources in the Biden administration, report that Washington is encouraging its European allies to supply fighter aircraft to the Kyiv regime.

“As a senior US Department of Defense official noted, commenting on such a sensitive topic on condition of anonymity, despite the low likelihood that the US will send its own fighter jets, which are in high demand on national security missions around the world, officials may consider allowing transfer to other countries (Ukraine. -

) their F-16s, ”writes Politico.

According to the interlocutors of the publication, other countries are also raising this topic.

“I think as we receive proposals from their side, we will conduct appropriate discussions,” a Pentagon source said.

• Pentagon

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At the same time, The New York Times notes that Washington, NATO and the Kyiv regime have developed tactics by which they are pushing Europe to supply the Ukrainian side with F-16s.

According to the publication, the refusal of the head of the White House to transfer combat aircraft to Kyiv is not a final decision.

In its usual Biden administration style, they say no, but in private, officials are quick to add that this response is likely temporary.

In addition, journalists believe that Washington's current position does not rule out that the administration decides to deliver F-16s later or prepare an agreement that will allow another country to send American fighters to Ukraine.

As possible suppliers of military aircraft to Kyiv, Denmark and the Netherlands are most often called, the material explains.

Despite this, Europe continues to assert that the supply of fighter jets to Ukraine is not on the agenda - the corresponding statement was made on February 1 by the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell.

At the same time, he admitted that this issue provoked disagreements between the member countries of the union.

Against this background, the European Parliament called for exploring the possibility of supplying Kyiv with Western combat aircraft and long-range missiles.

Such a thesis is contained in a resolution adopted at a special session of parliament timed to coincide with the EU-Ukraine summit, which is due on February 3.

MEPs also welcome the intentions of the United States, Great Britain and a number of EU countries to send main battle tanks to Kyiv and insist on the immediate start of crew training for them.

It should be noted that the resolutions of the EP are advisory in nature and are not binding on the institutions of the union.

Recall that 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 the republic and approve their re-export by other countries.

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

And the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Dmitry Kuleba, said that some unnamed European colleagues were allegedly already working on the issue of providing Kyiv with F-16 fighters.

• Fighter F-16 Fighting Falcon

• Legion Media

Attempts to disorient Russia

From the point of view of political scientists, the current statements of the American administration about the lack of intentions to transfer this or that military equipment to Kyiv are not worth trusting.

“The collective West seeks to disorient Russia so that it does not take any drastic steps.

This is a tactic of obfuscation: sometimes they will, sometimes they won’t, sometimes directly, sometimes through third countries or in parts.

As a result, armored vehicles, howitzers, and now tanks are being delivered.

This means that fighters cannot be ruled out, ”political scientist Mikhail Alexandrov said in a conversation with RT.

He drew attention to the fact that Washington is trying to shift the material part of the supplies to the European allies.

Moreover, according to his forecast, more and more high-tech types of weapons will be included in the deliveries.

“The West will send more deadly weapons to Ukraine: fighter jets and long-range missiles,” Alexandrov said.

In turn, Professor of the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Foreign Ministry Vladimir Vinokurov, in an interview with RT, expressed the opinion that plans to transfer more and more sophisticated Western weapons to Kyiv directly depend on the operational situation in the NVO zone.

“We have no doubt that the goals and objectives set will be achieved by the Russian army, so you need to keep in mind that in response to this, the West will supply new weapons.

Previously, it was announced that it was impossible to supply armored vehicles, but now they have already been agreed upon.

The same will happen with aviation, ”the political scientist believes.

According to him, the Biden administration is now looking to do this through its satellites in Europe.

“Washington is offering the Europeans to deliver their F-16s to Kyiv in exchange for new deliveries from the US, perhaps even F-35 fighters.

Again, this fills the US military-industrial complex with orders.

One such option is to export the F-16 via Denmark or the Netherlands.

Amsterdam has actually already agreed to separate these aircraft from its aviation fleet, ”the expert explained.

At the same time, in the case of fighters, the United States does not require nominal consent to direct deliveries, as was the case with tanks, Vinokurov added.

“It takes time to achieve the goals and objectives of the NWO, but it is unacceptable to wait for the appearance of Western fighter aircraft in Ukraine.

The decision on its supply, I think, is inevitable, because the West, obviously, has relied on a military victory over Russia, ”he concluded.