Russia: Giving F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine a ‘colossal risk’
Western countries “still cling to the escalation scenario” that threatens to expand the war with Ukraine in Europe, says the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs.
Western countries run “colossal risks” if they supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, a Russian official says.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko responded Saturday to a question about the implications of supplying the jets Ukraine has requested from NATO countries, the TASS news agency reported.
Ukraine has not yet received commitments to supply the planes, but US President Joe Biden told G7 leaders on Friday that Washington supports joint allied training programs for Ukrainian pilots on F-16s, senior US officials said.
“We see that Western countries are still sticking to the escalation scenario. It puts them at huge risk,” Grushko said.
“In any case, this is taken into account in all our plans and we have all the resources to achieve the set goals.”
Alexandre Vautravers, editor-in-chief of the Swiss Military Review, said that despite Russia’s warning, Moscow is unlikely to let the situation escalate.
“Every time a new weapon system was given to Ukraine, we heard a lot of rhetoric, but very little action from Russia,” he told Al Jazeera from Geneva. “I don’t think today’s rhetoric is enough of a deterrent.”
Vautravers added that Kiev is also facing major technical issues that needed to be addressed for the F-16 fighters.
“It is quickly running out of its air defense missiles and it is necessary to close the gaps of the Ukrainian air defense with these aircraft,” he said.
‘Necessary to improve’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been calling for months for advanced fighter jets to support Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion.
But the Ukrainian leader has so far been rejected by his Western allies, who fear that providing Ukraine with advanced offensive weapons could lead to an escalation by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the spread of the war in Europe.
Zelenskyy thanked British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the G7 summit in Japan on Saturday for his
support in forming a coalition to provide Western fighter jets.
“It is necessary to improve [Ukraine’s] air defense capabilities, including the training of our pilots,” Zelenskyy wrote on his official Telegram channel.