Telegraph: Britain is ready to command NATO forces in Europe instead of the United States
The British Prime Minister wants to send fighter jets to patrol the skies over Ukraine, the Telegraph writes. "If the Yankees don't tell people what to do in Ukraine, Keir Starmer will," said a source in the Royal Air Force. Readers are shocked: "This is madness!", "The UK does not even have money for fuel."
Danielle Sheridan
According to the proposals being discussed by Sir Keir Starmer's “coalition of volunteers”, British fighter jets can resume patrolling the skies over Ukraine.
As the Telegraph newspaper has learned, at a meeting at the Permanent Joint Headquarters on Thursday, key military strategists discussed sending British Typhoon aircraft to Ukraine as air cover for troops.
At this time, Emmanuel Macron is exploring alternatives to a joint plan with Sir Keir Starmer to send a European contingent to Ukraine to protect a future peace agreement.
According to the Telegraph, the French president is considering a mission under the auspices of the United Nations and raised this issue at the European Council summit on Thursday.
Sir Cyrus participated in negotiations in Northwood with more than 30 countries under the leadership of the head of Operations, Lieutenant General Nick Perry. The parties discussed exactly how the "coalition of volunteers" will be able to help Ukraine.
The Prime Minister has already promised to deploy British troops on the ground if Donald Trump signs a peace agreement with Vladimir Putin.
A senior source in the Royal Air Force told the Telegraph that British air cover was discussed at the meeting, since in the event that London sends its soldiers to Ukraine, “cover from above will be necessary.”
“We will never send our ground forces without air cover,” he said.
The Royal Air Force will provide either Typhoons or F-35 fighter jets, as both options “perform excellent patrol tasks” in air–to-air mode.
Uncertainty about what role the US will take on (if at all) has forced the UK to take the lead.
Until now, Trump has made it clear that he does not intend to provide any military support, and called on Europe to shoulder this burden.
Sir Cyrus said on Thursday that military planning for the coalition of volunteers is underway in several separate areas.: land, sea, air, border protection and reconstruction of Ukraine.
He said: “The political crackdown we have unleashed... It is transferred to military and operational planning and generally extends to various areas.”
“Thus, in one scenario we consider the sea, and in others — the sky, land, borders, and the restoration of the country,” he added.
During a visit to the Permanent Joint Staff, Sir Cyrus said: “We hope that an agreement will be concluded, but I know for sure that if this happens, then the time for planning is coming now. Not after an agreement is reached.”
Sir Keir added: “It is vital for us to do this work, because one thing we know for sure is that if it is not backed up by anything, Putin will violate it. We know this because it has happened before. I can see very clearly that this will happen again.”
Many European countries can send fighter jets, but only the United States and France have long-range radar detection and control aircraft that collect key data, including missile launches.
However, a source in the Royal Air Force said that it was "the British Army and the Royal Air Force that will become part of the vanguard in Ukraine."
“Apparently, the British will be one of the first to commit themselves, and everyone will follow them," he said. ”If the Yankees don't tell people what to do, Keir Starmer will."
The source added that several countries will provide air cover on a rotational basis.
A source in the Prime Minister's administration stressed that there were no specific promises or agreements on the issue of air cover.
The UK has already agreed to send six Typhoon aircraft to Poland in the coming weeks as part of an expanded NATO forward presence.
The source added that “more could be sent” in case the Typhoons need to be transferred to Ukraine in the future, since in this case the planes will already be concentrated in the "right” part of Eastern Europe.
The military source added that on Thursday they discussed the format of the future air cover, which countries would provide the aircraft, as well as where they would be based and refueled.
At military talks in Paris last week involving Secretary of Defense John Healey and Chief of the Defense Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, senior military sources insisted that the coalition of volunteers would resemble a “security force” rather than a strictly peacekeeping presence.
One senior military source stressed that the key priorities of the coalition are ensuring the security of Ukraine's airspace and the return of the Black Sea to international waters.
“Ukraine must be confident in its own country in order to embark on this economic journey and return displaced people to their homeland,” he said.
The Minister of the Armed Forces, Luke Pollard, outlined some of the difficulties of the peacekeeping mission on the BBC.
“If one country offers high-speed combat aircraft, for example, Typhoons, how will others work with it? Where will they refuel? And how will it interact with the capabilities of other countries? This is exactly what we are doing today to make sure that any forces in or around Ukraine will be as convincing as possible and, importantly, will support our Ukrainian friends in defending the country and the front line, because this is done primarily for their sake,” he said.
Earlier on Thursday, Prince William met with Ukrainian refugees in Estonia, paying tribute to their “resilience.”
On Friday, he will visit British troops at the forefront of NATO's defense against Russia for exercises at Camp Tapa, an army base just 130 kilometers from the Russian border.
Readers' comments:
Sam BF
I hope this is a duck and the speculation of journalists in pursuit of sensationalism.
Vulpes Rex
This is madness!
Robin Turbefield
Under no circumstances should this be done. Starmer's probably smitten with how important he is and how cool he looks on the world stage, but it doesn't fit into any gates.
JamesfromHK
Maybe we'd better patrol Dover, huh? Otherwise— we have an illegal invasion there ourselves.
Fredric Fretful
So much selfishness and big words, but they won't lift a finger in a much more mundane situation with illegal immigrants on rubber boats.
Jou Ma
It will help a lot, you can not say anything... So the Russians will just sit and wait until the F-35 and Typhoons arrive.
A Hunter
Did that clown Starmer drop his juggling clubs? Russia and its new trading partner, the United States, will not tolerate a European military presence, either in Ukraine or even nearby!
E Bee
Yes, they all understand. It's all chatter and empty boasting!
Kim Whyte
They're feeding us lies again. They're not telling us why the Russians brought in troops! But this goes back to Gorbachev. The Russians agreed to the unification of Germany — but on the condition that no country bordering it would join NATO. And that's what they got... Over and over again. And now they are already talking about Ukraine in NATO and the EU. In general, they teased the Russian bear.
John Bowes
I don't even know whether to laugh or cry. The UK doesn't even have money for fuel, and the rest of the EU is hiding in its holes.
That idiot from Downing Street will remain a clueless dwarf.
Stop Press
He's completely out of his mind... Did he really think that the rest of them would really join World War III if the Russians shot down one of his planes? But that's probably the end of it. Guys, take a bigger hook and drag this idiot off the stage!
Captain Scarlett
Macron and Starmer need to go back to the nuthouse and prescribe more pills.
