Ukraine mourns ex-Navy SEAL killed in combat
Ukraine’s call for a “fighter jet coalition” to provide planes so its forces can firmly control its airspace was on life support Tuesday after Britain apparently rejected the plan.
Also Tuesday, Ukraine mourned the death in combat of a former U.S. Navy SEAL, France promised to send more howitzers, and a Ukraine newspaper found evidence of over-the-top profiteering by European weapons dealers.
Max Blain, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, said sending jets to Ukraine was not practical because British Typhoon and F-35 fighter jets “are extremely sophisticated and take months to learn how to fly.”
Poland, Estonia and the Baltic nations expressed support for Ukraine’s plan, however. Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said Ukraine needs fighter jets and “we need to act.”
A day earlier, President Joe Biden rejected the proposal, as did German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. France has not ruled out sending fighter jets to Ukraine under conditions that would bar Kyiv from attacking Russian territory, President Emmanuel Macron said Monday.
Ex-Navy SEAL Daniel Swift mourned in Ukraine
Ukrainians soldiers held a memorial ceremony Tuesday for American Daniel Swift in Lviv, Ukraine. Swift was a former member of the Navy SEALs who has been listed in official records as having deserted since March 2019. The Navy did not provide further information about his U.S. military record, but said, “We cannot speculate as to why the former Sailor was in Ukraine.” Swift was killed last week in Ukraine in fighting with the Russian army.
Adam Thiemann – a former U.S. Army Ranger who previously fought in Ukraine – told Rolling Stone that during an operation in Bakhmut on the night of Jan. 14 and into the early morning of Jan. 15, Russian forces launched an anti-personnel rocket-propelled grenade at Swift and two other soldiers.
At least five other Americans are known to have died fighting in Ukraine, according to the State Department and reports from individual families.
Report: European arms dealers jacked up prices for Ukraine
European arms brokers drive prices up and charge excessive commissions when supplying arms to Ukraine, according to an investigation by the Kyiv Independent and other media outlets. The report alleges the Estonian company Bristol Trust OÜ received about $2 million, or 30% of the deal, in commission for 12,500 grenades for shoulder-fired missile launchers last March. The report says the commission was three to six times the industry average.
Ukraine expects up to 140 tanks in ‘first wave’ of contributions
Ukraine will obtain 120 to 140 modern tanks in the first wave from the West, Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Tuesday. Kuleba did not say when the tanks, including German-made Leopards, British Challengers and U.S. Abrams, would arrive.
The Ukraine military has suggested that the first tanks could arrive from Norway by the end of March. Norway owns 36 Leopard tanks but has not said how many it will send to Ukraine. Germany has said it hopes to begin transferring more than a dozen tanks to Ukraine by early April.
Kuleba said the tank donor coalition includes about a dozen countries and that Ukraine is trying to persuade more countries to join the group – and to get increased commitments from those already on board.