Ukraine insists it needs Gripen fighter jets – ambassador

Ukraine still wants to receive Gripen fighter jets, Andrii Plakhotniuk, the Ukrainian Ambassador to Stockholm, said after Sweden's defence minister mentioned that some countries have requested that plans to supply these combat aircraft be put on hold. Source: Plakhotniuk in an interview with the Swedish agency TT, as reported by European Pravda Details: Plakhotniuk said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's message during his visit to Sweden last August still holds true today. "He made it clear that we are interested in this system," the ambassador said, referring to Gripen fighter jets.

 "We need Gripens, we need ammunition, and we need air defence systems.

We need everything to protect Ukrainian lives," Plakhotniuk added. Earlier, TT cited a statement by Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson, who revealed that several states had asked Sweden to halt its plans to supply Ukraine with Gripen fighter jets in order to focus on the delivery of F-16 fighter jets. The following day, on 29 May, Sweden announced its sixteenth package of military aid to Ukraine - its largest yet, worth SEK 13.3 billion (about EUR1.16 billion).

As part of this package, Sweden will send an ASC-890 Airborne Surveillance and Control aircraft.

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