Europe may deploy 120 fighter jets to protect skies over Ukraine. Project will operate separately from NATO

The “Sky Shield” plan is being reconsidered in Europe — it now involves the deployment of allied air forces consisting of 120 fighter jets to protect Ukrainian airspace.

This is reported by The Guardian.

"Sky Shield" is supported by former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe Philip Breedlove, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Richard Shirreff, former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski, and Gabrielius Landsbergis, who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania.

The initiative will operate separately from NATO. It could potentially become part of the "truce in the sky" concept that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has previously proposed.

The defense would cover Kyiv, three operating nuclear power plants, Odesa, Lviv, but not the front line or the east of the country. The implementation of the plan could “achieve a greater military, political and socio-economic impact than 10 000 soldiers in Europe’s Ground Forces,” The Guardian writes.

“Sky Shield” is known to have been a joint development of European air forces and the Ukrainian military. The proposal has not made any progress since February 2022 due to the fact that European countries feared being drawn into the war. Volodymyr Zelenskyʼs meeting with the US President Donald Trump gave the plan a "momentum".

The development of events in the last week means that ideas about protecting part of Ukraineʼs airspace may take on a new meaning, according to the discussion participants.

There are concerns in the West about the possibility of NATO fighter jets being drawn into a conflict with Russia, which could escalate hostilities if either sideʼs aircraft are attacked or shot down. But supporters of the project say the risks are low, as Moscow has not dared to fly its warplanes beyond the front lines since early 2022.

• Volodymyr Zelensky believes that the first stage of a ceasefire in Ukraine could be, in particular, an immediate ceasefire in the sky. This includes a ban on missiles, long-range drones, and bombing of energy and other civilian infrastructure.

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