[ad_1]
Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III began pushing the Biden administration to provide Ukrainian fighter pilots with F-16 jet training last month, after European allies told them they wanted to continue the training, U.S. defense officials said Monday. .
Mr Austin chaired a meeting on April 21 of top defense officials from around 50 countries – a collective known as the Ukraine Contact Group – at Ramstein Air Base in Germany on April 21.
On his return to Washington, Mr. Austin told senior Biden administration officials that the time had come to change his stance against the exercise, and at the very least, move to another country to provide planes to Ukraine, according to the official. , who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss internal deliberations. The F-16 will represent a major upgrade of the Ukrainian air force’s assets and capabilities.
After Russia invaded Ukraine almost exactly 15 months ago, officials in Kyiv called for advanced fighter jets to counter Russian air superiority. But the White House, acting on the advice of senior Pentagon officials, has refused. Its strength is that the jets can be used to hit targets inside Russia, which could prompt the Kremlin to increase its attacks on Ukraine. Pentagon officials have also said that more weapons, especially those used for air defense, are needed more quickly, and that the high cost of F-16s — up to $63 million each, depending on the model — could mean more weapons and supplies. squeezed out.
But US resistance followed a familiar pattern. The Pentagon eventually reversed, as it did when it supplied the American M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Several European NATO countries with F-16s in their arsenals have called for an international effort to provide training and transfer the jets to Ukraine. Doing so requires American consent, because the weapons are manufactured and sold by the United States.
Mr. Austin got unanimous approval from Biden’s senior national security officials, defense officials said. Prior to last week’s Group of 7 meeting, Mr. Austin made a formal recommendation to President Biden.
The recommendation is for Mr. Biden to “continue with allies to train Ukrainians and transfer capabilities,” the official said. The plane – which is considered the “fourth generation” of warplanes, as measured by factors such as speed, guidance system, surveillance capabilities, stealth and weapons – is not expected to play a role in the expected counteroffensive of Ukraine, because training will take months.
But “Secretary Austin believes Ukraine must have a fourth-generation air capability at some point, so continuing the exercises makes sense,” the official said.
[ad_2]
Source link