Pentagon says countries helped Ukraine boost air power

Pentagon says countries have helped boost Kiev's air power ahead of a new Russian offensive in the Donbass region.

The Pentagon said US allies have helped bolster Ukraine's fleet of fighter aircraft by donating spare parts needed to make more of the jets operational as fighting with Russia heats up in the country s Donbass region.

While Washington hasn't been able to provide some Soviet-type weaponry that Kiev requested, countries that have compatible gear in their inventories have stepped up to help, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday. Such aid included fighter jet parts in the past few days.

Kirby said they received support to make some of their fixed-wing aircraft more operable again. The proof is in the pudding. They have more fixed-wing fighter aircraft available to them than they did two weeks ago. That is not by accident. That's because other nations that have experience with those kinds of aircraft have been able to help them get more aircraft up and running. Kirby didn't identify the countries involved in the parts shipments, nor did he reveal the number or type of jets that have been repaired and put back into service. The US and other NATO members have accelerated weapons shipments to Ukraine in recent weeks, citing Russian attacks on civilians. Moscow has denied targeting civilians and accused Kiev of staging supposed war crimes to manipulate public opinion about the conflict.

The Pentagon rejected a request by Poland last month for the US to allow the transfer of MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, saying that such a move would lead to a wider war with Russia. President Joe Biden s administration objected to the idea of transferring the jets from a US military base in Germany through contested airspace in Ukraine last week, according to US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. Countries in the region are still free to give military aircraft to Ukraine, he said.

There is no proof that this aid has been provided so far. Ukrainians have started a crowdfunding campaign called buymeafighterjet, which seeks donations that will be used to replace planes destroyed by Russian forces.

Kirby said the aid being sent to Ukraine, such as artillery pieces, radar systems and coastal defense systems, is tailored to the battles expected in the Donbass. He said Ukraine has also been given more tanks, though not directly from Washington.

Kirby said that the kinds of tanks they know how to use are not the tanks that we have in our inventory, but other nations have provided some tanks. Some nations have spare parts provided by them so they can get their inoperable tanks operational again. Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, said on Tuesday that he recommended to Biden that Western nations undertake a long-term buildup of Ukraine's military forces. "My long-term goal must be to strengthen and fortify Ukraine to the point where Russia would never invade again," he told UK lawmakers.