The US has told its allies it will back a joint international effort to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 and other modern fighter jets, marking a significant boost to western support for Kyiv as it prepares a major counteroffensive.
US president Joe Biden has informed fellow leaders attending a G7 summit in Japan of his decision, a senior administration official said, adding that the plan would include training “on fourth-generation fighter aircraft, including F-16s, to further strengthen and improve the capabilities of the Ukrainian air force”.
The fourth generation category also includes Britain’s Eurofighter Typhoon and France’s Mirage 2000.
The decision represents a dramatic shift in stance by Washington, which had previously presented the supply of F16s to Ukraine as unfeasible.
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Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is expected to attend the summit in Hiroshima over the weekend, tweeted: “I welcome the historic decision of the United States and @POTUS to support an international fighter jet coalition. This will greatly enhance our army in the sky. I count on discussing the practical implementation of this decision at the #G7 summit in Hiroshima.”
Meanwhile, the US and its G7 partners have announced new penalties aimed at punishing Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, intensifying what is already one of the harshest sanctions efforts ever implemented.
The move came on the first day of the three-day G7 summit in Japan and marks the latest sanctions and export controls targeting Moscow, which have hit thousands of targets and imposed steep curbs on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine last year.
“Today’s actions will further tighten the vise on (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s ability to wage his barbaric invasion and will advance our global efforts to cut off Russian attempts to evade sanctions,” US treasury department secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.
The Treasury said it imposed sanctions on 22 people and 104 entities with touchpoints in over 20 countries in jurisdictions, while the State Department targeted almost 200 people, entities, vessels and aircraft.
US sanctions authorities were also expanded to more sectors of the Russian economy, including architecture, manufacturing and construction, the Treasury said, allowing any person or entity operating in those sectors to be hit with sanctions.
The US and Europe imposed financial penalties on Russia immediately following the start of the war and have steadily ratcheted up the pressure since then, targeting Russia and officials close to Mr Putin, the financial sector and oligarchs.
Experts say Washington could still impose tougher penalties, however - while the sanctions have clearly damaged Russia’s economy, they have not stopped Mr Putin from pursuing a war that has killed thousands and turned cities to rubble.
On Friday, in a joint statement about Ukraine, the G7 leaders agreed to support Kyiv for “as long as it takes” and to increase pressure on Moscow through additional sanctions measures, including efforts to curb its diamond exports. But the statement did not include an earlier pledge to block Russian energy export routes that have been temporarily shut down by Moscow since the war began.
Mr Zelenskiy’s attendance at the G7 meeting potentially complicates Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida’s efforts to ensure that the summit, which is being held in Asia for the first time in seven years, would not focus solely on the war.
Mr Kishida wants the gathering to focus on security issues in the Indo-Pacific region and outreach to developing countries as well as the Ukraine conflict. The US also wants to have a strong focus on the Indo-Pacific and ensure that the countries can demonstrate as much unity as possible on their approach to China.
Mr Zelenskyy is expected to redouble efforts to secure increased military support from western allies, including supplies of US-made F-16 fighter jets, which require the blessing of Washington.
He is also expected to discuss efforts to promote his 10-point peace plan for ending the war, which calls for a full Russian withdrawal and the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity. A rival Chinese proposal does not refer to these as prerequisites for peace talks.
Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, did not confirm Mr Zelenskiy’s attendance at the Hiroshima summit, but told state TV on Friday that “very important things will be decided there, so the physical presence of our president is absolutely important in order to defend our interests”.
The Japanese government had previously said that Mr Zelenskiy was expected to participate in the event via video conference. His international travel plans during the war have been kept secret until the final moment because of security concerns.
Mr Zelenskiy has not visited Asia since the conflict began but he made previously unannounced visits to the UK, France, Italy and Germany this week.
Chris Johnstone, a Japan expert and former Pentagon official, said Mr Zelenskiy’s appearance at the G7 would reinforce Mr Kishida’s view that events in Europe and Asia were “deeply interconnected”.
Japan has taken a strong stance in support of Ukraine, including imposing sanctions on Russia, partly because it wants European support in the face of the rising challenge from China.
“It’s also a challenge to Europe, to be equally strong in pushing back [at] Chinese behaviour,” said Mr Johnstone, who is now at the CSIS think-tank in Washington.
Canada on Friday joined the other G7 members in imposing a further round of sanctions on Russia for its suspected human rights abuses and to penalise individuals and entities that provide military technology to the Russian armed forces. - Guardian/Reuters