Sweden says no agreement yet on Gripen jets for Ukraine
Sweden and Ukraine have not reached any definite agreement on the supply of Swedish Gripen fighter jets, local media outlet SVT News reported on Sept. 30, citing the Swedish Defense Ministry.
The statement followed the BBC's reporting that Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Ivan Havryliuk had hinted that Kyiv is "expecting" additional deliveries of Western aircraft, including Gripen jets.
"Practically, you named the nomenclature correctly, but I won't go into detail about when, what, or which," Havryliuk said when asked by the BBC whether Ukraine is expecting Mirage and Gripen jets deliveries, along with new F-16s.
Swedish authorities confirmed that talks on the supply of the aircraft have been ongoing, but said that no clear decision has been reached at this time.
"There have been ongoing talks between Sweden and Ukraine for some time about the export/sale of Gripen E," said Adam Schelin, a spokesperson of Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson, according to SVT News. "But nothing is clear yet."
Discussions about supplying Sweden-made Saab JAS 39 Gripen jets to Ukraine have persisted for years as Kyiv seeks to modernize its Air Force with Western aircraft.
Ukraine currently operates U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, provided by Denmark and the Netherlands, as well as French Mirage 2000 aircraft.
Then-Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said last September that Ukraine is also in talks to acquire Gripen and Eurofighter Typhoon fighters, but no decision has been announced since then.
Last summer, Swedish authorities said that plans to supply Gripen fighter jets to Ukraine were put on hold to prioritize F-16 deliveries, but could be revived once those transfers are complete.
