No choice but to send in the jets
AS THE political obituaries were being written for the doomed premiership of Boris Johnson last year, there was one thing upon which all parties were agreed – even Labour. The undeniable highlight of his tenure was being among the first to alert the world to the horrors of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and then going on to rally the response from thewest.
While he might have struggled with Prosecco, he had Vladimir Putin’s number from the very beginning and helped ensure vital military kit was promptly despatched to the front.
As a result, while this former prime minister and first lord of the Treasury might struggle to raise a smile in Keighley, he’d be mobbed in Kyiv.
Be in no doubt: without Johnson’s far-sightedness and ceaseless gentle hustling of other world leaders, Putin’s tanks would have rumbled across most of Ukraine many months ago, and his renewed attention to the conflict comes at just the right time.
Of course, being in the spotlight is also not doing him any harm as the Conservative Party continues to be its very own worst enemy and slumps in the polls.
But his plea to supply fighter jets to Ukraine, as President Volodymyr Zelensky has requested, surely makes sense.
While many military experts were quick to support the stance, understandably some expressed fears of escalation. They argued that aside from Nato forces actually setting foot on Ukrainian soil, there was nothing so inflammatory as shipping in fighter jets.
And guess what – they’re right. But what real alternative is there?
If soaring energy costs are to be tackled here in Britain (and they absolutely must) this conflict has to be brought to a close.
Anyone who thinks Putin is going to concede or even negotiate rationally has not been following this gruesome conflict closely enough.
This time last year he was giving assurance after assurance that there would be no invasion. But in truth, he was waiting for his forces to amass and for the right weather before authorising this illegal advance.
This is a world leader who has sanctioned the bombing of maternity hospitals, schools and apartment blocks as legitimate acts of war.
In the name of “Mother Russia” he leads an army whose soldiers use rape and execution as a means of subjugating and intimidating the local population.
Prisoners are executed and left to rot on the streets, to be eaten by dogs and rats, as Boris Johnson reported last month.
The only way Putin will exit this awful confrontation is on the run to a “friendly” host nation, or in a wooden box.
All of which means the jets are, regrettably, the necessary next step. After much dithering, Germany finally agreed to send tanks to the Ukrainian army, bringing the tally of Western tanks to about 130, or enough to form what is called a brigade.
Experts say that should be sufficient to hold back the Russian push, widely expected next month. But, for a proper offensive to drive Russia back across the border, air cover is crucial.
The British-made and supplied Stormer air defence system has kept Russian aircraft grounded as they know they’d be little more than target practice. So now is the moment to push on.
As Colonel Hamish de Bretton Gordon, a former commander of the British 1st Royal Tank Regiment who saw action in the Gulf, said: “Tanks have been decisive on the battlefield for more than 100 years, but only if supported by infantry, artillery and air power.”
Here’s a little of what Mr Johnson said in the US last week: “Experience teaches us that when it comes to it, we finally decide to let the Ukrainians have what they need to defend themselves. And so my argument is – if that is where we’re going to end up in our ratiocination (reasoning) then let’s do it now – let’s stop the delay and end this war as fast as possible.”
Or, as Johnson’s great hero Winston Churchill might have put it: “Give them the tools and let them finish the job.”