The war between Ukraine and Russia has just been going on and on and on, and Biden promised Ukraine F-16s back in May of 2023
Report: Ukraine receives first batch of U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets
Ukraine has received its first batch of long-awaited American-made F-16 fighter jets that will help the country fight back against Russia’s superior air power, according to news reports.
A top advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mykhailo Podolyak, said he would neither confirm nor deny Ukraine had received the F-16s. Other Ukrainian officials were similarly tight-lipped.
However, Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said on X, quote, “F-16s in Ukraine. Another impossible thing turned out to be totally possible.”
Four European members of NATO – the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium and Norway – have publicly pledged to send the war planes to Ukraine, starting this summer.
Which NATO member sent them?? No one knows. No one knows if they will actually make a difference in war in which drones take down helicopters.
Many military analysts say they believe the F-16s will help Ukraine, but they are not expected to result in a major change in the trajectory of the war. They also say they think Ukraine will use the warplanes primarily to counter Russian air attacks.
They note that Russia has strong air defenses and the F-16s will be vulnerable when carrying out offensive operations.
Russia has over 1,000 jets. How many will Ukraine get, and, will they make any difference? And, a big concern is that Ukraine uses them to strike deep into Russia.
US Aid is Flowing to Ukraine Again. Can It Turn the Tide of the War?
The best way to describe Ukrainian morale right now is that it is flickering.
It’s flickering on the front lines, with exhausted troops bearing the brunt of more than two years of war with minimal breaks. And it’s flickering on the homefront, because the living situation in the country is deteriorating. Power outages triggered by Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure cause lights to blink on and off daily, a visual reminder of the stalemated war.
The two are interconnected: After all, the homefront contains the pool of men who are needed for another mobilization. The only way for Ukraine to change the situation on the battlefield is to relieve the bone-tired soldiers on the front lines who have been fighting for years and mobilize tens of thousands — even hundreds of thousands — of new, able-bodied recruits to continue the country’s defense.
Fortunately for Ukraine, the arrival of more aid and ammunition, paid in large part by the $61 billion military aid package passed by Congress earlier this year, is already making a difference on both fronts.
Will it make a difference? Probably not. It really hasn’t made much of difference the numerous times America and other NATO nations gave Ukraine money and arms. Heck, how much of that money will simply end up as graft to politicians and Ukrainian oligarchs? The best solution would be for Russia to leave Ukraine, but, will that actually happen? What are the chances? Meanwhile, this war just keeps dragging on and wasting American taxpayer money for really no gain. How long will Ukrainians stand for continuing the war? Men are bolting the country to avoid being drafted. People in the western part are partying and living their lives. It’s a war of attrition, one where Russia isn’t trying to destroy everything, as they want the nation intact as much as possible.
Read: Ukraine Finally Gets Its F-16s »
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