Ukraine Receives Fighter Jets From United States

• The moves indicate a change in attitude in the West, which had initially refused to provide Ukraine with heavy armaments to avoid a confrontation with Russia

• Kirby did not specify the type of aircraft delivered to the Ukrainian military, which had been pleading for warplanes for weeks

EDITOR’S PICK

• Powerful Explosions Rock Kyiv After Russian Warship Sinks
• Elon Musk Stages $43bn Hostile Takeover Of Twitter
• Ukraine Crisis: Russia In Retreat As Putin Appears To Admit Defeat In Battle For Kiev

EKO HOT BLOG reports that Ukraine has received fighter planes and aircraft parts to bolster its air force in the face of Russia’s invasion, the Pentagon said Tuesday, declining to specify the number and type of aircraft nor their origin.

Ukrainian forces “right now have available to them more fixed wing fighter aircraft than they did two weeks ago,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

He noted the United States had “helped with the transshipment of some additional spare parts that have helped with their aircraft needs, but we have not transported the whole aircraft.”

The announcement comes a week after US President Joe Biden unveiled an $800 million military aid package for Kyiv, including heavier equipment such as howitzers, as fighting escalates in eastern Ukraine.

The moves indicate a change in attitude in the West, which had initially refused to provide Ukraine with heavy armaments to avoid action Russia could consider direct involvement in the conflict.

Ukrainian forces “right now have available to them more fixed-wing fighter aircraft than they did two weeks ago,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday.

“Without getting into what other nations are providing, they (Ukrainian forces) have received additional platforms and parts to be able to increase their fleet size,” he said.

Kirby did not specify the type of aircraft delivered to the Ukrainian military, which had been pleading for warplanes for weeks, but suggested that they were Russian-made.

FURTHER READING

• US To Give Heavier Weapons To Ukraine As Russia Plans Next Assault
• Russian Soldiers Raping Many More Ukrainian Women, Says MP
• 7th Russian General Killed In Ukraine

“Other nations who have experience with those kinds of aircraft have been able to help them get more aircraft up and running,” Kirby said.

He underscored that while the United States had helped with the shipment of some parts, it had “not transported whole aircraft.”

Click to watch our video of the week