Former British prime minister; Boris Johnson has continued to urge Rishi Sunak to give Ukraine military warplanes.
Mr. Johnson has used a trip to the US to urge for an increase in Western military support for Kyiv, ignoring objections to the provision of high-tech NATO aircraft.
However, Downing Street claimed that training Ukrainian pilots to fly the RAF’s Typhoon and F-35 aircraft would take years and that the current UK prime minister was instead focused on offering assistance that would be useful immediately.
At a gathering organized by the Atlantic Council think tank, Mr. Johnson said: At an event hosted by the Atlantic Council think tank, Mr. Johnson said: “I hear that an objection to their having sophisticated Western planes to fly is that they won’t know how to use them. I have to say I take that argument with a bit of a pinch of salt.”
However, the official spokesman for the prime minister in Downing Street outlined the logistical challenges in providing British airplanes to Ukraine.
“I have to say I take that argument with a bit of a pinch of salt.”
But in Downing Street, the prime minister’s official spokesman set out the practical difficulties in supplying British warplanes to Ukraine.
“We will continue listening to the Ukrainians and consider what is right for the long term,” the spokesman said.
“But it’s helpful to understand the situation, that the fastest training program for a new pilot is approximately 35 months. The current UK fast jet training program takes five years.”
The official stated that Sunak planned to “focus on how we can help Ukraine defend their country and push back this year”, the spokesman added.
Before his trip to Washington, Mr. Johnson was “acting in his own capacity and not on behalf of the UK Government,” according to Downing Street.
