Russia-Ukraine war: Kyiv urges US Congress for F-16 jets

Ukrainian officials have sought to urge members of the United States Congress to press the Biden administration to send the F-16 fighter jets to Kyiv. Officials have said the F-16 jets would help Ukraine’s ability to hit Russian missiles with US-made rockets.

Kyiv officials sought to press US Congress members on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference over the weekend during talks between Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and a bipartisan group of senators and members of the US Senate and the House of Representatives. This follows last month’s response by US President Joe Biden, who said “no” when pressed on whether he would approve Kyiv’s request to send F-16 jets.

“They told us that they want to suppress enemy air defenses so they could get their drones” past Russia’s front lines, Senator Mark Kelly told Reuters on Saturday.

On Sunday, Biden administration officials said the United States should focus on providing weapons that can be used right away on the battlefield instead of fighter jets that require extensive training. However, Washington did not rule out sending F-16s.

Three other lawmakers said they believed that there is growing support in Congress to provide Ukraine with modern fighter jets, known to be one of the world’s most versatile multi-role aircraft. The Ukrainian air force has adapted US-made AGM-88 HARM air-to-surface rockets to fit their Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets. Ukrainians say their pilots can more effectively target Russian S-300 and S-400 air defense missile units with the AGM-88 if the rockets are fired from the F-16s, according to the lawmakers.

“They contended that they need that airplane for the SEAD mission,” said Kelly referring to the suppression of enemy air defenses. ”They probably think they can do a better job at taking out the S-400s.”

According to the British defense ministry on Tuesday, since January, Russia has inflicted severe damage on medical and educational facilities, according to its latest intelligence bulletin. The ministry noted that with the damage to medical and educational facilities, paired with continued civilian casualties, was an indication of Russia’s indiscriminate attacks through artillery and its weapons systems.