Skip to content
Edit post

Zelensky: 'We won't delay counteroffensive' despite lack of F-16 jets

by The Kyiv Independent news desk April 29, 2023 7:35 PM 2 min read
President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to governors and local officials on April 20, 2022. (President's Office)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Ukraine will launch its counteroffensive before its allies hand the country the U.S.-made planes, President Volodymyr Zelensky told Scandinavian media in an interview published on April 29.

"It would help a lot... But we understand that we will not delay this, and we will start even before we have F-16s or something else," he said.

Providing Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets will deter Russia rather than provoke it, Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on April 27.

"F-16s will not (escalate the war) either. Giving Ukraine, F-16s will deter Russia rather than 'provoke' it. Time to take this step," Kuleba added.

Ukraine has been requesting fighters for months to defend its skies and maximize the effectiveness of its combined arms forces during a future counteroffensive.

Of all the available models, Ukraine has shown the most interest in the U.S.-built F-16, in service since the 1970s, and is operated by over 20 nations.

However, multiple Western allies, including the U.S. and Germany, have ruled out sending fighter jets soon, while debates about their provision are ongoing.

Ukraine’s lack of advanced aircraft and missiles will likely prolong Russia’s war of aggression and result in thousands of deaths, while the country suffered a mass missile strike on April 28.

The April 28 strike was Russia's first mass attack in nearly two months. It targeted several regions far from the battlefield. In Dnipro, the strikes killed a two-year-old and her mother.

Russia launches another mass attack on Ukraine, killing 2-year-old child
Russian forces launched yet another large-scale missile strike against Ukraine in the early hours of April 28, killing at least 19 civilians and injuring 24 more. The number of casualties is not final and will be updated.

News Feed

2:20 PM

Ukraine launches largest drone attack on Moscow.

Russian air defense shot down 70 Ukrainian drones, including 34 in Moscow Oblast, in Ukraine’s largest drone attack on the Russian capital, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Nov. 10.
4:34 AM

EU preparing 15th sanctions package against Russia, targeting foreign-made parts.

"We have to strengthen anti-sanctions circumvention measures because Russia cannot produce (weaponry) without imported parts, chips and other components," the EU's chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, said at a news conference in Kyiv. "We should use sanctions to isolate Russia's industrial capabilities from imports from other countries."
2:25 PM  (Updated: )

Ukrainian drones hit chemical plant in Russia's Tula Oblast, source says.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported on Nov. 9 that Ukraine struck seven Russian regions – including Tula Oblast – with 50 drones. Moscow claimed that it had shot down all 50 drones, including two over Tula Oblast, which is located south of Moscow.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan
* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.