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Biden says the US will NOT send F-16s to Ukraine after promising to deliver M1 Abrams tanks and doesn’t yet know if he’ll be able to make it to Kyiv when he visits Europe in the future.
- President Joe Biden told reporters ‘no’ when asked if he would send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
- The president also said “I’m not sure” when asked if he would take a trip to Europe next month to mark the first anniversary of the Russian invasion.
- Biden said he would visit neighboring Poland, Ukraine, but did not know when.
President Joe Biden responded in the negative Monday when asked if he would send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
“No,” he told reporters on the South Lawn.
The president also said “I’m not sure” when asked if he would take a trip to Europe next month to mark the first anniversary of the Russian invasion on February 24.
Biden said he would visit neighboring Poland, the Ukraine, but did not know when.
President Joe Biden fielded questions from reporters as he returned from Baltimore on Monday afternoon. He said ‘no’ when asked if the US would send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
F-16 fighter jets can fly more than 500 miles and locate targets in all weather conditions. They can also detect low-flying aircraft.
Biden and NATO leaders are scheduled to hold their next summit in nearby Lithuania in July.
The president spoke to reporters after returning to the White House Monday afternoon from Baltimore, where he delivered a speech on infrastructure after spending the night at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, so his wife could travel to Philadelphia to see his beloved Eagles win the NFC Championship Game. .
Politico reported on Saturday that a handful of Pentagon officials have been pressuring the Defense Department to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, to help prevent Russian missile and drone attacks.
F-16 fighter jets can fly more than 500 miles and locate targets in all weather conditions. They can also detect low-flying aircraft.
“I don’t think we’re going to oppose it,” an unnamed senior Defense Department source told the news outlet ahead of Biden’s pronouncement on Monday.
Another option would be for the US-made F-16s to come from another country, and Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said last week his cabinet would seek to supply the jets but would need US approval for the transfer. .
Earlier Monday, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, together with French President Emmanuel Macron, said that Ukraine has not formally requested the planes from the Netherlands.
Rutte and Biden spoke by phone about Ukraine on Monday morning, the White House said, but the president called the conversation “private” during his conversation with reporters on the South Lawn.
Last week, Biden committed 31 US M1 Abrams tanks to the war effort, after previously saying the US would not send tanks to Ukraine.
The announcement came after a long back and forth with Germany, which ended with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreeing to send Leopard 2 tanks to the war-torn country.