Sweden says it’ll consider sending Gripens to Ukraine only after NATO membership

Defense analysts have long argued for Gripen fighter jets to be sent to Ukraine. A report in November 2022 from the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) defense and security think tank deemed the aircraft “by far the most suitable candidate” of Western-manufactured combat jets, capable of meeting operational requirements. The same document stressed that the supply of the jets would minimize the risk of Ukraine being subjected to long-range missile strikes by Russia, while noting that the Swedish Air Force’s employment of “low level air superiority tactics from dispersed bases” are similar to Ukrainian Air Force operations.