Selenskyj is negotiating in Sweden
Ukrainians are already practicing in Gripen fighter jets
08/19/2023, 6:15 p.m
In May, the US government gave the go-ahead for the delivery of fighter jets to the Ukrainian army. But the process is tough, and there is no delivery date in sight. During his visit to Sweden, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy seems to be making significantly more progress with a different model.
According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine is in talks with Sweden about possible deliveries of fighter jets. Zelenskyj explained after a meeting with the Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson near Stockholm that it is about aircraft of the Gripen model. The Gripen – in German the griffin – is the pride of Sweden, said the Ukrainian head of state. “I firmly believe that he can secure our freedom.”
The first Ukrainian pilots have already started their training in the Swedish manufacturer Saab’s fighter jet. The delivery of such aircraft to Ukraine will also be a central part of his talks with other Swedish politicians, Zelenskyj said after his meeting with Prime Minister Kristersson. He did not comment on Gripen jets at the meeting. Sweden had already invited the Ukrainian pilots to test flights with the fighter jets in June, but at the same time stated that all aircraft of this model are currently needed.
Ukraine has long urged its Western partners to supply modern fighter jets to break Russian air superiority. Kiev currently has only a few obsolete Soviet machines. The current ground offensive by Ukrainian troops is suffering from the lack of air protection and is progressing less quickly than Kiev had hoped.
“Wonderful News”
However, the delivery is now taking shape: The US government announced on Friday that it would agree to sending American F-16 fighter jets from Denmark and the Netherlands to Ukraine as soon as Ukrainian pilots were trained to do so. This is “wonderful news,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov wrote on the platform, formerly known as Twitter.
It is currently unclear when the Ukrainian pilots will complete their training. It may start this month with the support of 11 countries. There is therefore no exact delivery date for the F-16 jets. Ukraine does not believe that the delivery will happen this year.
The US government had already given the green light in principle for the delivery of such jets to Ukraine in May. The Netherlands and Denmark are leading plans to train Ukrainian pilots on the fighter jets.