In the midst of his upcoming visit to London, Polish President Andrzej Duda gave an interview to the BBC in which he discussed the potential sending of F-16 aircraft to Ukraine and peace conditions amid the ongoing war initiated by Russia a year ago. 

Duda called sending F-16 fighters to Ukraine a “very serious decision” that would “not be easy to take”. The Polish leader noted that his country “does not have enough of these jets” and that it “would need many more of them”. Duda insisted that there were only a few dozen F-16 jets in the Polish air force.

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Duda explained that a potential decision to provide the Ukrainian army with fighter jets had to be a “joint decision” duly discussed among NATO allies. He stressed that different kinds of weapons also have to be delivered to Ukraine so that the latter can defend itself against Moscow’s attack. 

As the BBC rightly underlines, President Duda has been one of the most ardent supporters of the Ukrainian war effort and has contributed vast amounts of military aid, becoming the leading supplier of heavy weaponry to its neighbour. 

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Poland as a whole has actually been one of Ukraine’s main supporters since the start of Russia’s invasion. The country also became a place of refuge for several million Ukrainians.

Andrzej Duda will be flying to London on Thursday, 16 February, to continue the intensive British-Polish dialogue about European security.

Image: Twitter @prezydent.pl

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen