Stockholm has been receiving suggestions to suspend plans for the supply of JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets to the Ukrainian Air Force, Swedish Minister of Defense Pål Jonson announced after "intense negotiations" in Brussels with the countries — participants of the "fighter jet coalition" in support of Ukraine.
"We have been urged by the other countries that run the coalition to wait with the Gripen system. This has to do with the fact that the focus is now on introducing the F-16 system," Jonson explained to TT News Agency, Aftonbladet reports. Jonson notes that the transfer of Gripen fighters to Ukraine is not ruled out and "may become relevant in the future", but now the priority for the partners is the F-16 program.
Read more: Ukrainian Air Force Wants JAS 39 Gripen and Ready to "Fight" for It
The authors of the article note that the Swedish opposition demanded that the government urgently begin the transfer of JAS 39 Gripen aircraft to Ukraine but Jonson rejects this possibility. "It is not in line with how the coalition views the introduction of two fighter aircraft systems at the same time," he said.
Defense Express reminds that, in fact, this is not the first time that the thesis "F-16 first, then Gripen" has been publicly voiced in Sweden. Earlier this March, Jonson already pointed out that the transfer of F-16 is the priority for the partners, especially since Sweden is also part of this coalition, and that the potential transfer of JAS 39 Gripen should be decided based on the general context of the progress within the "fighter jet coalition."
The discourse revolving around a possible supply of Gripen aircraft to Ukraine was raised by mass media and various officials several times throughout 2023 and 2024. For example, Saab stated that sending these aircraft to Ukraine "would be a fairly rapid process."
But, judging by the current rhetoric of the Swedish defense ministry, the Ukrainian Air Force will only become eligible to get Gripen after the partners have delivered a certain number of F-16s and organized the necessary associated activities, such as aircraft maintenance, supply of compatible weapons, etc.
For a reminder, according to preliminary estimates, Ukraine should receive the first F-16 jets in summer 2024, so far four countries have agreed to transfer their F-16 aircraft: the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and Norway.
Read more: Saab Says It Would Be a Fairly Rapid Process to Send Gripen Aircraft to Ukraine
