The West and playing with fire
Despite Putin's warning not to interfere in Ukraine, arms shipments continue
Ibrahim Al-TarikMay 8, 2025
The US is working with Warsaw on a deal to supply Polish fighter jets to Ukraine as Kyiv increases pressure on the West to strengthen its air force to repel Russian attacks. Under the deal, Ukraine would receive Russian-made fighter jets from Poland, which in turn would be outfitted with F-16 aircraft from the US. This comes amid fears that Russia will step up its airstrikes given the slow progress of parts of its ground campaign.
What consequences could this have? At the start of the military operation in Ukraine, Putin unequivocally stated that any foreign interference would provoke reactions "like you have never seen in your history". The President addressed [in a video address] on February 24(http ://kremlin.ru/events/president/news/67843) to his people, but also to Ukrainians and other governments - at minute 25:27 he addressed everyone who wanted to get involved. He further said: "Those who publicly claiming world domination with impunity, declare us, Russia, their enemy. In fact, today they have great financial, scientific, technological and military capabilities. We are aware of this and objectively assess the threats."
The White House said it was negotiating with Poland and consulting with other NATO allies, but said there were "a number of difficult practical issues, including how the planes can actually be transferred from Poland to Ukraine."
"We are also working on the capabilities that we could provide to equip Poland if it decides to move planes to Ukraine," a White House spokesman said.
A Polish official said: "Poland is not at war with Russia, but it is not an impartial country, supporting Ukraine as a victim of aggression. However, it believes that all military issues must be decided by the whole of NATO.
The agreement came after a day of intense pressure from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his foreign minister. Both said NATO should make fighter jets available to Ukraine if it doesn't want to set up a no-fly zone over the country.
The media reported on Saturday that Zelensky made an emotional plea for the US to provide Poland and other Eastern European allies with F-16 fighter jets so that those countries could then send Russian-made fighter jets to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian pilots need Russian-made aircraft because they have been trained on these systems.
Speaking by phone with nearly 300 US lawmakers on Saturday morning, Zelensky said Ukraine desperately needs more planes, especially after NATO decided against imposing a no-fly zone because it would risk a wider conflict with Russia, according to people associated with are familiar with the conversation.
Washington is seeking more support for Ukraine and this week sent Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, the same weapons the US provided to the mujahideen to repel the Russian invasion of Afghanistan.
The White House said President Joe Biden spoke to Zelensky Saturday night, noting that the US is "increasing its security, humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine and working closely with Congress to secure additional funds."
A U.S. lawmaker said Zelensky had expressed his appreciation for the Stingers, but they were inadequate because they couldn't fly high enough to take out some Russian planes.
The US and its allies have shipped a number of weapons to Ukraine. However, they are concerned that President Vladimir Putin may view the deployment of fighter jets as an escalation that he could interpret as NATO entering the conflict against Russia. Putin said on Saturday Moscow would consider the establishment of a no-fly zone by a third party as "participation in the armed conflict".
Polish President Andrzej Duda had previously said sending planes would amount to interference in the conflict.
A person familiar with the situation said the Biden administration had previously indicated to Poland that the US could not provide the country with American warplanes. The White House denied that the US opposed the idea of sending Russian-made fighter jets to Ukraine, saying it was "a sovereign decision that any country can make".
Brendan Boyle, a Democratic congressman from Philadelphia who took part in the Zoom call with Zelensky, told the Financial Times that there is bipartisan support in Congress for creative solutions. He pointed to the example of the United States, which passed the Lend-Lease Act during World War II to facilitate the supply of war material and weapons to countries.
"We need to look for analogies with the Lend-Lease Act to find a 2022 version for Ukraine," Boyle said. "There is broad American support for anything we can do to arm the Ukrainians. Politically, it's a relatively easy task."
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba made a similar plea at a meeting with his American counterpart Antony Blinken at the Polish-Ukrainian border on Saturday. Kuleba said it's "no secret that we have the greatest need for fighter jets, attack aircraft and air defense systems."
He added: "If we lose airspace, there will be much, much more blood on the ground, and it will be civilian blood."
Asked if the US would consider the request, Blinken said "we talk about everything and we work on everything," adding that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is working closely with his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov.
