The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Tobias Bilström, explained the suspension of the transfer of fighter jets to Ukraine by the fact that Ukraine itself came to the conclusion that having two fighter systems at the same time — both the F-16 and the Saab JAS 39 Gripen — is too much and difficult from the point of view of management.
He told about this in an interview with Voice of America.
"We must understand that Ukraine was given the opportunity to receive F-16 fighters, of which, of course, there are more in the NATO family. After all, more countries have F-16s than Gripen fighters. This has nothing to do with the Swedish governmentʼs decision. This decision was made because Ukraine came to the conclusion that having two fighter systems at the same time — both F-16 and Gripen — is too much. After all, we are talking about systems. Itʼs not just about getting planes and training pilots. These are complex systems, and it would be too difficult to implement two of them at the same time,” said Billström.
He noted that Sweden is open to a future Gripen transfer to Ukraine when the F-16 program is sufficiently developed. "Again, this is Ukraineʼs business, not the Swedish governmentʼs," Bilström added.
- Ukrainian pilots began familiarization training on Swedish fighter jets on August 19, 2023. At that time, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine and Sweden have already discussed future steps for Gripen deliveries.
- In September, Swedish Defense Minister Paul Jonsson announced that Ukrainian pilots had undergone basic JAS 39 Gripen training, and ground personnel had received training. Jonson said that the training experience of the pilots was supposed to be the basis for considering whether Ukraine needs Gripen aircraft.
- At the end of May 2024 , Sweden suspended the Gripen transfer to Ukraine. Jonson said that this was requested by the allies, since all attention is focused on the integration of F-16 fighters into the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
- After that, on May 31, Ukraine and Sweden signed a security agreement. It describes the prospect of the Gripen ADF transfer, including the relevant training.