Asked whether NATO members could begin sending planes to Ukraine, Blinken said "that gets a green light." The US' top diplomat then said that Washington was already working with Polish officials to "backfill" any aircraft they send to Ukraine - meaning the US would replace every Polish aircraft given to Kiev with an American one.
The US and NATO have ruled out a no-fly zone, and repeatedly stated that they would not send troops to Ukraine.
However, delivering fighter jets to the Ukrainians has not proven simple thus far. The European Union pledged warplanes to Ukraine late last month, but faced two significant hurdles: first finding jets that Ukrainian pilots could fly, and then finding countries willing to deliver them from their airports.
The Ukrainian Air Force uses Soviet-designed MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-24, Su-25, and Su-27 jets in combat roles, and with the Su-25 used by Bulgaria and the MiG-29 used by Poland, Bulgaria and Slovakia, the jets would need to be sourced from these countries.
Shortly after the EU's announcement, Poland stated that it wouldn't send jets to Ukraine nor allow its airports to be used for deliveries. Bulgaria and Slovakia then stated that they wouldn't take part in any deal, effectively killing off the EU's arms supply plans.
"We are looking actively now at the question of airplanes that Poland may provide to Ukraine and looking at how we might be able to backfill should Poland decide to supply those planes. I can't speak to a timeline but I can just say we're looking at it very, very actively."The White House said it was working with Polish officials "on this issue and consulting with the rest of our NATO allies," NBC News reported. "We are also working on the capabilities we could provide to backfill Poland if it decided to transfer planes to Ukraine," a White House spokesperson said.
"Poland won't send its fighter jets to #Ukraine as well as allow to use its airports. We significantly help in many other areas."
Supporting the delivery of jets to Ukraine occupies a middle ground for the US between active intervention in Ukraine and purely economic retaliation against Moscow. The government in Kiev has made no secret of its desire for the US to intervene militarily. Such a measure would see the US and any willing NATO allies commit to shooting down Russian aircraft, something Moscow has explicitly said it would perceive as an act of war.
Delivering fighter jets to the Ukrainians has not proven simple thus far. The European Union pledged warplanes to Ukraine late last month, but faced two significant hurdles: first finding jets that Ukrainian pilots could fly, and then finding countries willing to deliver them from their airports.
The Ukrainian Air Force uses Soviet-designed MiG-29 and Sukhoi Su-24, Su-25, and Su-27 jets in combat roles, and with the Su-25 used by Bulgaria and the MiG-29 used by Poland, Bulgaria and Slovakia, the jets would need to be sourced from these countries.
Shortly after the EU's announcement, Poland stated that it wouldn't send jets to Ukraine nor allow its airports to be used for deliveries. Bulgaria and Slovakia then stated that they wouldn't take part in any deal, effectively killing off the EU's arms supply plans.
"The intelligence services of NATO countries are transferring foreign terrorist fighters to Ukraine...the US and UK intelligence services in recent weeks have de facto turned Polish territory into a 'logistical hub' used to supply weapons and smuggle fighters, including from the Middle East, to Ukraine."According to the intelligence service, the terrorists, who are to be deployed to Donbass, were trained at the US-controlled Al-Tanf military base in Syria.
"At the end of 2021, the Americans released from prisons... several dozen Daesh terrorists, including citizens of Russia and CIS countries. These individuals were sent to the US-controlled Al-Tanf base, where they have undergone special training in subversive and terrorist warfare methods with a focus on the Donbass region."
Comment: For more on the situation, check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Crossing the Rubicon