Ukraine will be able to achieve its strategic goal of reaching its 1991 border by taking control of all its russian-occupied territories, believes the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksii Danilov. However, it will be very difficult to achieve until Ukraine manages to gain at least parity of forces in the air domain, he stated during the "Spotlight: The Front and Ukraine’s Recovery" special event that took place at the Kyiv Security Forum on September 5th.
"I was very surprised to hear a NATO general say there can be any achievements without air superiority. Bear in mind that every NATO guidebook, every NATO operation begins with air support. Because it's about people's lives," Danilov noted.
Read more: NATO Has Responded to Romania’s Confirmation that a Shahed Drone May Have Fallen on Its Territory
Apparently, he was referring to the thesis voiced by several high-ranking U.S. military officials in light of delays in F-16 multirole aircraft supplies. For instance, the U.S. Air Force Gen. James B. Hecker earlier said F-16s sent to Ukraine wouldn't become a "silver bullet" but simply ease Ukraine’s use of weapons already being provided – due to innate interoperability with F-16. Similar ideas were also voiced by USAF Secretary Frank Kendall and Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley.
Besides, even reaching the administrative borders of the Crimea is "very-very tough," Oleksii Danilov said. Commenting on the suggestion by President Zelensky that after Ukrainian forces arrive at the doorstep of Crimea, russian forces can be pushed out by "political means," he elaborated:
"That would mean that russian have to go, go away from our Crimea, and people who lived there before 2014, would return there. First of all the Crimean Tatars have to get back their homes, return to their homeland. And Ukrainians that used to live there, would return home."
At the same time, for Ukrainian Defense Forces to be effective in driving the russian invasion army from occupied territories, they need more weapons, said former CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus, who was invited as a special guest to the Kyiv Security Forum.
Petraeus suggested that Ukraine's allies are already "past the point of certain concerns of certain responses," and so now they have to quicken up making decisions and supplying weapons to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, including F-16.
Read more: Former CIA Director will Participate in Special Event at Ukraine's Kyiv Security Forum
