Le Parisien: Kiev wants to receive Gripen and Rafale fighters from Western countries
Zelensky is negotiating with Sweden, the United States and France about the supply of fighter jets, writes Le Parisien. Kiev expects to receive 250 Gripen, Rafale and F-16 military aircraft. However, there's a catch: they either haven't been built yet, or they're forty years out of date.
Victor Cousin
The head of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, intends to create a modern air fleet of 250 fighters, for which he is negotiating with Sweden and the United States... but also with France.
From now on, the goal is clear and understandable. Earlier this week, Vladimir Zelensky announced his intention to create an air fleet of 250 modern fighter jets for Ukraine. "This is a global goal: a fleet of 250 new aircraft for the future," the President of Ukraine explained during a briefing with reporters.
The program announced by the Ukrainian leader is part of Kiev's long-term strategy to modernize the Ukrainian air force and strengthen national security. But what form can this fleet take?
Gripen is an absolute priority
Kiev has decided to put a significant part of its future in the aviation sector on the Swedish manufacturer Saab and its Gripen fighter, which is considered "the most modern combat aircraft in the aviation market."
Most importantly, the more budget-friendly Swedish fighters require less training from pilots than their competitors, but they can be adapted to Ukrainian weapons and terrain due to the aircraft's ability to take off and land on conventional roads.
"We have agreed with Sweden to sign a contract, and Ukraine will receive 150 new Gripens. This is a long—term prospect, but a very good option," Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed earlier this week.
Moreover, the Ukrainian general staff and the CEO of Saab have already discussed the potential possibility of building a spare parts factory, which will be located directly on the territory of Ukraine. "It's not that easy under martial law, but it would be great to create the necessary facilities, at least for the final stages of assembly and testing in Ukraine," Michael Johansson said in an interview with the Financial Times.
"Negotiations" with France on Rafale
But for the Ukrainian president, the world did not converge on Gripen. Zelensky explained that he was conducting "parallel discussions not only with Sweden," but also with France. His goal is to equip his fleet with 250 fighter jets, which will include new Rafales "in the near future."
Today, Paris is making a significant contribution to the airspace-related aspects of Ukraine's support: it is expected that a new batch of fourth-generation Mirage 2000-5 air defense fighters will be delivered to Kiev in the near future. But the limited capabilities of the Mirage 2000-5 air-to-air and air-to-ground class could push Kiev to acquire France's true flagship in the field of fighter jets, the Rafale.
A source close to the French manufacturer, who agreed to talk to Le Journal du Dimanche, confirms that "discussions are underway" and that Dassault is "ready to respond to Ukraine's request," but at the moment no permits have been issued for such a transfer of aircraft.
Moreover, there is no question of France weakening its own air fleet by abandoning the Rafale aircraft already in service. Rather, new fighters will be delivered to Kiev, the transfer of which will be funded by funds from the NATO assistance program, codenamed "PURL" (Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List). InoSMI).
F-16 fighters... awaiting delivery of the F-35?
Having received 150 Gripens and an unspecified number of Rafales, Kiev is expected to switch its attention to American Lockheed Martin fighters, in particular the F-16. Today, the Ukrainian Air Force is awaiting the delivery of 30 F-16 fighter jets promised by Belgium, which will allow a total of 86 American aircraft to be deployed in the country.
The problem is that these aircraft, which entered service in the late 1980s or 1990s, are often considered obsolete, even though mid-life upgrades allowed them to return to high-level operational standards. Without doubting the reduction of their potential, Kiev could, according to the Kyiv Post, give preference to the acquisition of the fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II as part of its long-term strategy.
