Sweden open to sending Gripens to Ukraine after 'F-16 program completed,' decision up to Kyiv
Stockholm is open to providing Ukraine with Gripen fighter jets after the "F-16 program is completed," but further steps depend on Kyiv, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom told Voice of America in an interview published on July 10.
Previously, Sweden's Defense Minister Pal Jonson said that other partners asked Stockholm to wait with possible plans on sending Gripen fighter jets to Ukraine, as the focus is now on providing Kyiv with F-16 aircraft.
According to Billstron, the Swedish government did not refuse to send Gripens along with F-16 fighter jets from other allies, but Ukraine concluded that adopting two aircraft systems simultaneously would be difficult to manage.
"We are talking about systems. It's not just about getting aircraft and training pilots. These are complex systems, and it would be too difficult to implement two of them at the same time," Billstron said in the interview.
"But that doesn't mean that Sweden is not open to continuing with the Gripens if and when the F-16 program is completed."
Kyiv is expected to receive at least 79 F-16s from the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and Norway. The supposed deadline for completing the "F-16 program" is unclear, as Belgium plans to continue delivering its planes until 2028, for example.
The first batch of planes are on their way from the Netherlands and Denmark to Ukraine and will arrive this summer, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on July 10. The deliveries are expected to continue in the following years.
In late May, Sweden announced the largest military aid package worth $1.3 billion for Kyiv, which includes two ASC 890 radar reconnaissance and control aircraft.
