Ukrainian commander re-ups ask for F-16 aircraft in talk with top US general
Mike Brest
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The top commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reiterated his troops’ need for F-16 fighter aircraft in his most recent conversation with the top U.S. general.
Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi said on Monday he spoke to Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He said they discussed “the need to strengthen capabilities of the air defense system of [Ukraine], in particular through the provision of F16 multirole fighter aircraft.”
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Col. Dave Butler, a spokesman for the Joint Staff, said in a statement that the two leaders “discussed the unprovoked and ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and exchanged perspectives and assessments. The Chairman reaffirmed unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly requested the U.S. and other allies provide them with F-16s, but President Joe Biden has declined every time, doing so as recently as last week.
Biden ruled out sending F-16s to Ukraine “for now” in an interview last week, insisting Ukraine’s military “doesn’t need F-16s now.”
National security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a CNN interview on Sunday that the administration is “taking a very hard look at what it is that Ukraine needs for the immediate phase of the war that we’re in” and has determined that F-16 fighter jets do not meet that requirement.
“This phase of the war requires tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers, artillery, tactical air defense systems, so that Ukrainian fighters can retake territory that Russia currently occupies,” he added. “F-16s are a question for a later time. And that’s why President Biden said that, for now, he’s not moving forward with those. So, as far as we’re concerned, the U.S. effort has got to be to get Ukraine the tools it needs for the mission at hand. And the mission at hand is to have a successful counteroffensive where Ukraine is able to take back its own territory, away from the hands of the Russians.”
Proponents of providing Ukraine with the fighter aircraft argue that the U.S. needs to provide Ukraine with the weapons it seeks to ensure Ukraine’s forces are best suited to defeat the Russian military. They also argue that, at a minimum, the U.S. should begin training Ukrainians on the aircraft, which will take a couple of months, so that they’re prepared if Biden does change his mind.
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“I talked to Milley last night. I don’t think it’s off the table,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) said on ABC on Sunday about F-16s. “I think, with enough pressure from Congress on both sides of the aisle, we can get into Ukraine what they really need to win this fight. Otherwise, what are we doing in Ukraine?”
McCaul has become one of the Republicans’ most vocal advocates of providing Ukraine with the weapons it seeks, including long-range ATACMS missiles, which would enable it to hit targets Russian positions deep into Crimea.