Sweden will supply Ukraine with JAS 39 Gripen hypersonic fighter jets to boost Kyiv’s defence efforts amid stalled peace talks with Russia.
The agreement on the provision of fighter jets to Ukraine was reached during President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit to Linkoping town in southern Sweden that is home to “Swedish aeroplane corporation", known as Saab, which is the producer of JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets. Zelenskiy met with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Linkoping.
Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Kristersson said the two countries had signed a log-term cooperation deal over air defences, which also includes 100 to 150 JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets. Saab has not revealed the cost of the deal yet, however, the agreement could mark Sweden’s biggest ever aircraft order. “From today, we are committed to exploring all the possibilities in providing Ukraine with a large amount of Gripen fighters in the future,” Kristersson said.
In a post on X on Saturday, Zelenskiy described the defence agreement with Sweden as “historic” and an “ambitious task”, adding that Kyiv was counting on 150 JAS 39 Gripen fighters that are expected to arrive next year. Kristersson who also hailed the agreement on an X post on Saturday, said Ukrainians “want the world’s best fighter aircraft” to be able to defend their country in the long term.
“We are helping Ukraine defend freedom against Russia. We are doing it for their sake, but also for our own. We still don’t know when this war will end. We only know that how it ends will affect our security for at least a generation to come. And future generations should know that we stood on the right side of history,” the Swedish Prime Minister continued.
