A Ukrainian official in Kyiv tells the American media ABC News that Russia is replacing aging fighters with an upgraded version of the Sukhoi Su-35 fighter. These fighters increase Russia’s ability to exercise air power in eastern Ukraine, the source says.
– The Su-35 aircraft are equipped with very effective radar and long-range missiles. Ukraine is not capable of countering this, says the source ABC News.
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– A real risk
Two other Ukrainian officials confirmed to ABC News that Russia’s ability to exercise air power over the battlefield is a major problem. One of the two sources claims Russia has 12 times as many fighter jets as Ukraine.
– Russian superiority in the air is a real risk, says one of the sources, who also points out that more air defense is a wish on the part of the Ukrainians.
– We continue to tell the Americans that in the end there will be no other solution than to give us Western fighters.
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Request denied
So far, the United States and the Biden administration have refused Ukraine’s request for American fighter jets of the F-16 type. When US President Joe Biden was asked in January if he was open to supplying Ukraine with F-16s, he answered with a curt “no”.
Poland and Slovakia, on the other hand, have offered Ukraine several fighters of the MiG-29 type. The MiG-29 was developed in the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s as a counterpart to American fighters such as the F-15 and F-16.
