Senior MP: Germany won’t send fighter jets to Ukraine

The head of the defense committee in the Bundestag, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, highlighted complicated pilot training as a barrier.

According to Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, the chair of the military committee of the Bundestag, Germany will not send fighter jets to Ukraine. However, the lawmaker emphasized that Berlin had already given the go-ahead for the transfer of outdated military aircraft with Soviet design to Kiev, along with a number of other NATO countries.

Strack-Zimmermann claimed in an interview with Deutschlandfunk on Tuesday that she “and most of my colleagues said relatively early on that I don’t see Tornados or Eurofighters in Ukrainian airspace.” The congressman went on to mention the intricate training that Ukrainian pilots would need to fly the warplanes.

She argued that old Eastern German stockpiles of Soviet-designed fighter jets have shown to be more practical.

Strack-Zimmermann asserted that Ukraine receiving F-16s built in the US would be a significant contribution, despite the fact that Berlin does not use this model of aircraft.

The congressman claims that while Germany is doing everything it can to support Ukraine militarily, Kiev cannot expect it to supply the entire complement of weapons.

Any discussion of Western fighter jet supply to Ukraine is “a bit premature,” according to an unknown member of French President Emmanuel Macron’s administration, according to a report published on Sunday by Politico.

During a visit by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to London on Monday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced greater military cooperation, including a program targeted at strengthening the skills of Ukrainian fighter jet pilots. An announcement claims that the program will “hand in hand with UK efforts to work with other countries on providing F-16 jets.”

In recent months, Ukraine has escalated its requests for military aircraft produced in the West, but those requests have not yet been met. Several NATO member states have offered Ukraine with Soviet-designed fighter planes instead.

Russia has frequently warned Western states that by providing Kiev with more advanced weapons, they risk getting pulled into a direct military confrontation. Additionally, Moscow has reiterated that no amount of military assistance from the West will stop Russia from attaining its objectives in Ukraine.