Joe Biden rules out sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine

• Joe Biden has decided against sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
• Despite persistent requests for immediate air support from Ukrainian leaders.
• Germany and France similarly disallowed sending jets to Kyiv.

Joe Biden, US President has decided against sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, despite persistent requests for immediate air support from Ukrainian leaders.

Mr. Biden simply responded “no” when a reporter asked if the US would be delivering the planes on Monday.

His remark came a day after the leader of Germany similarly disallowed sending jets.

In its protracted conflict with Russia, Ukraine has long pushed its friends to provide cutting-edge combat aircraft to assist Kyiv seize control of its skies.

There should be no taboos on such military assistance, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the country’s top military officers, but the US and its allies worry that this would escalate the situation with a nuclear-armed Russia.

The US-made F-16s would be a substantial improvement over the battle jets of the Soviet era, principally MiGs, that Ukraine is presently employing that were produced before the nation’s 1991 declaration of independence from the USSR.

But Mr. Biden has consistently rejected Ukraine’s requests for the jets, focusing instead on offering military assistance in other regions.

The US said last week that it would send 31 Abrams tanks to Kiev, altering its previous position. Similar support was also guaranteed by the UK and Germany.

Andriy Melnyk, the deputy foreign minister of Ukraine, welcomed the news but urged partners to form a “fighter jet coalition” that would also provide the country access to Eurofighters, Tornados, French Rafales, and Swedish Gripen aircraft.

The chancellor of Germany stated in a Sunday interview that discussing the delivery of additional military help to Ukraine while his government had already agreed to delivering Leopard 2 tanks “seemed ridiculous.”

Olaf Scholz also reiterated to German newspaper Tagesspiegel that the NATO military alliance was not at war with Russia and that it would “not allow such an escalation”.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macon said on Monday that “by definition, nothing is excluded”, referring to military assistance to Ukraine. But he stressed that it must neither further inflame the situation nor limit France’s ability to defend itself.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov is now in Paris, where he is expected to discuss the issue with top French officials.

Poland – another key ally of Ukraine – has also not ruled out sending F-16s to Kyiv. However, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said any such move would only be possible “in complete co-ordination” with other NATO members.

Andriy Yermak, the head of President Zelenskyy’s office, said that Ukraine had received “positive signals” from Warsaw.

Other nations, including Belgium and Pakistan, make use of the F-16 Fighting Falcon, which is regarded as one of the most dependable fighter jets in the world.

According to the US Air Force, it can be equipped with precision-guided missiles and bombs and has a top speed of 1,500 mph (2,400 km/h).

The F-16’s targeting capabilities would enable Ukraine to more precisely attack Russian units at night and in any weather.

NATO countries, especially the US and Germany, have been reluctant to deploy military assistance that could cause the situation to worsen. NATO has been accused by Moscow on numerous occasions of acting as an aggressor by proxy.

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