British Defense Minister Ben Wallace did not rule out sending fighter jets to Ukraine by any NATO country. He stated this on Thursday, February 23, on the air of the British radio station LBC.
The minister said that NATO aircraft would not be sent to Kyiv in the short or medium term.
“NATO is not going to enter into this conflict,” he explained, answering the question why the deliveries would not be made.
At the same time, Wallace added that the military air equipment or the MiG-29 would potentially be transferred to Ukraine not by the military bloc itself, but by the countries that are its members.
“I think there is already talk that one of the Eastern European countries will supply the MiG-29,” said the head of the British defense department.
Earlier, on February 18, Wallace said that Ukraine would receive modern fighters like the Eurofighter Typhoon, but only after the completion of a special operation of the Russian Armed Forces to protect Donbass. He assured that “quick deliveries” of aircraft in the next six months are definitely not to be expected. Wallace emphasized that there is a consensus in the Western community about this.
On the same day, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that London was ready to support countries that could transfer fighter jets to Kyiv. He added that Britain is already “leading” in training Ukrainian pilots to fly fighter jets. He also reiterated his call for the Allies to “double their support”.
At the same time, at the Munich Security Conference, former Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi said that the United States should supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter-bombers.
On February 17, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki expressed his readiness to supply MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Western countries have stepped up military and financial support for Ukraine after the start of Russia’s special operation to protect Donbass. The decision on the special operation was made by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin against the backdrop of the aggravation of the situation in the region as a result of increased shelling by Ukrainian militants.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.
