According to him, this statement by Biden does not mean that other NATO countries will not start supplying fighters. For example, the Netherlands is “ready to consider the request”, France “does not exclude”, and the Baltic states “push and call”, the senator wrote on his Telegram channel, recalling that nine NATO countries have F-16s, and France has its own Rafale fighters.
Pushkov stressed that the US leader’s statement is not enough to prevent an extremely dangerous escalation. The United States must not only firmly adhere to this position, but also influence its allies to exclude such supplies, the senator concluded.
Ukrainian authorities previously said they would like to receive 24 fighter jets as part of a military aid package from Western allies. In particular, Kyiv would like F-16 jets, but other options are possible, for example, French Rafale and Swedish Gripen jets.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has already criticized the constantly emerging demands for new weapons for Ukraine, also rejecting the idea of supplying fighter jets. German parliamentarian Ralf Stegner approved of Scholz’s refusal to supply fighter jets to Kyiv, stressing that when “already large-scale” support is given to Ukraine, it is always about preventing the escalation of the conflict.
