Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s Defense Minister, said on Sunday that Kyiv’s Western allies have committed to transferring French Mirage and Swedish Gripen multirole fighters to bolster Ukraine’s air defense.
When questioned on television about the number of US-made F-16s being transferred to Ukraine, Umerov said in addition to F-16s – some of which are already operational in the country – there are also “a commitment” for the Mirage and “commitments or consultations for the Gripen.”
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The discussion also reportedly included “consultations” for the Eurofighter typhoon, one of the most advanced jets fielded by European nations, though it’s likely the discussions remain in the early stages based on Umerov’s choice of words.
“Now we have from partners that they give a commitment for the F-16, a commitment for the Mirage, commitments or consultations for the Gripen, consultations for the Eurofighter. That is, this is a very good list of platforms.
“And we discuss when they will start. Soon we will have the results that we will announce. Hopefully, we’ll let you know later,” Umerov said, as per Ukrinform citing comments from the interview.
Umerov added that the ministry has been updating Ukraine’s allies on its aerial needs and capabilities. He said Russia uses up to 300 planes and up to 300 helicopters against Ukraine, and that Ukraine has been discussing strategies to counter the threats with its allies.
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“That’s why we explain to our partners how many brigades or wings we need. In this regard, we also explain to them and justify which platforms we need. In this context, we worked last year to focus on pilot training, on getting platforms, on building all the necessary infrastructure,” Umerov added.
In June, French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to provide Ukraine with Mirage-2000 fighter jets and train Ukrainian pilots as part of a new military cooperation agreement, with the training slated to start in the summer.
French media SudOuest reported Wednesday that France has been modernizing some of its Mirage 2000-5F fighter jets destined for Ukraine with ground strike capabilities.
Kyiv Post reported in July that Kyiv declined Sweden’s offer to transfer the latter’s Gripen multiple fighters, citing difficulty in adopting and integrating two different Western airframes simultaneously following the recent arrivals of F-16s.
However, Gripen transfers to Ukraine remain on the table.
In its recent aid package for Ukraine, Sweden also included the purchase of components for its Saab JAS 39C/D Gripen aircraft as it modernizes its own air fleet, adding that the retired components included in the package “[allow] for their potential future transfer to Ukraine, pending a decision by the Swedish government.”
However, due to the logistics involved in training pilots and maintaining a new aircraft system, it’s unlikely that the aforementioned jets will be spotted over Ukrainian airspace in the near future, though Kyiv’s experience with the newly acquired F-16s might be able to provide a basis for future NATO aircraft integrations due to some of the shared systems and components.
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