Ukrainian officials have renewed calls for the United States and Germany to supply them with fighter jets in their ongoing fight with Russia, after the two Western allies reversed their decision on tank supplies.
The United States and Germany previously said they would not send the armored fighting vehicles, but reversed the decision after further negotiations, eventually agreeing to send more than 30 M1 Abrams tanks and 14 Leopard 2 tanks, respectively.
Ukrainian officials are now engaged in “fast track” talks for long-range missiles and military aircraft, a top Ukrainian presidential aide said on Saturday.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Ukraine supporters in the West “understand how war plays out” and the need for planes capable of providing cover for the tanks they have pledged to send.
UKRAINE TRIGGERS ALARMS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY IN THE MIDDLE OF RUSSIAN DRONES ATTACKS; WESTERN TANKS TRAINING TO START
An F16 fighter jet takes part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the airbase in Lask, central Poland, on October 12, 2022.
(RADOSLAW JOZWIAK/AFP via Getty Images)
Podolyak said that some of Ukraine’s Western partners maintain a “conservative” attitude towards shipments of advanced weapons “for fear of changes in the international architecture.”
“We need to work with this. We need to show (our partners) the real picture of this war,” Podolyak told the Freedom online video channel. “We have to speak reasonably and tell them, for example, ‘This and this will reduce deaths, this will reduce the load on the infrastructure. This will reduce the threats to the security of the European continent, this will keep the war localized.’ And we’re doing it.”
Podolyak did not identify any partner countries.
Russia, which has received its own weapons and supplies from China, North Korea and Iran, has accused the West of supplying Kyiv with increasingly sophisticated weapons. Russian officials say supplying weapons to Ukraine constitutes “direct involvement.”
Germany and the United States announced on Wednesday that they would send advanced battle tanks along with Bradley and Marder vehicles to Ukraine and train Ukrainian troops to use them in an effort to help Kyiv make progress in stalemates.
The decision was met with complaints and criticism from the Kremlin, which continues to criticize Western interference.
F16 fighter jets take part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the airbase in Lask, central Poland, on October 12, 2022.
(RADOSLAW JOZWIAK/AFP via Getty Images)
An F16 fighter jet takes part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the airbase in Lask, central Poland, on October 12, 2022.
(RADOSLAW JOZWIAK/AFP via Getty Images)
UKRAINE-RUSSIA WAR: GERMANY AGREES TO SEND 2 LEOPARD 2 TANK BATTALIONS AFTER HEAVY PRESSURE
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Ukrainian troops will learn to operate German-made Leopard 2 tanks at a training site in Germany later this month.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry took to Twitter on Wednesday to celebrate the start of training.
An F16 fighter jet takes part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the airbase in Lask, central Poland, on October 12, 2022.
(RADOSLAW JOZWIAK/AFP via Getty Images)
F16 fighter jets take part in the NATO Air Shielding exercise near the airbase in Lask, central Poland, on October 12, 2022.
(RADOSLAW JOZWIAK/AFP via Getty Images)
Zelenskyy also thanked the United States for the military aid.
“Thank you @POTUS for another powerful decision to give Abrams a [Ukraine]. Grateful to [the U.S.] people for leadership support!” he wrote Wednesday. “This is an important step on the road to victory. Today, the free world is united as never before by a common goal: the liberation of [Ukraine].”
“We are making progress,” he added.
US MAY DELIVERY ‘SIGNIFICANT NUMBER’ OF ABRAMS TANKS TO UKRAINE DESPITE PENTAGON DOUBTS
In another tweet, he wrote: “German main battle tanks, further expansion of defense support and training missions, green light for partners to supply similar weapons. Just learned of these important and timely decisions on a call with [German chancellor] Olaf Schölz. Sincerely grateful.”
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The Russia-Ukraine invasion will reach its one-year mark next month.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
