Poland ready to hand over F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, if allies agree
Poland is ready to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine in coordination with NATO.
Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak said on Telegram: “Work on obtaining F-16 fighters continues. We have positive signals from Poland, which is ready to hand them over to us in coordination with NATO. Tanks and fighters are a great company for turning Russian enemies into fertilizer.”
In a news conference on Monday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that Poland could hand over F-16 jets to Ukraine, if allies agree.
In response to a reporter’s question, Morawiecki said: “Similarly to the MiG-29s a few months ago, any other aircraft could be possibly sent, if there is an agreement with allies. We will act in lockstep with NATO allies.”
How to force Putin to retreat — Poroshenko’s seven-point plan
Former Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko released a seven-point plan to force Russia to retreat. Here are the plan’s major points.
1. We expect the G7 to lower the price cap on Russian oil in March. We’d like to see it closer to the floor than the ceiling. The current price cap is above the market price for Russian oil.
2. There’s a need to tighten controls over a ban on transshipment of Russian oil and production of blends that contain the Russian crude. We call for stricter controls as [shippers and refiners] hide origin of Russian oil.
3. The entry to the Suez Canal by Russian subject-to-sanctions export goods shall be blocked by every tool available in the international law, including the energy cargoes that are not insured by insurance companies known for diligent compliance with the sanctions regime. Simply do not accept policies from unreliable insurance companies that are under the influence of Russia or its partners that do not comply with the sanctions regime. Perpetrators shall be stopped by the naval forces of NATO member states, the plan reads.
4. Let’s move from Africa to the Arctic. Restrictions on Russian trade in liquefied gas should be strictly observed. We are grateful to equipment and technology suppliers like French Total, German Linde and Siemens, and Japanese Mitsui for stopping cooperation with the Arctic LNG2 project, as well as South Korean Daewoo Heavy that refused a tempting contract for 15 ice-class tankers.
5. There is a need to finally close Druzhba oil pipeline down, and we need help in attaining the understanding of it with Hungary, the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. It is absurd when the Russians destroy our infrastructure, and we still have to pump approximately 12 million tons of Russian oil! Based on the agreement with the partners, I have no doubts that Ukraine will stop both Druzhba and our part of the GTS (gas transportation system). The only reason why we still pump oil and gas is because we count on the opinion of those of our partners who still consume Russian energy resources, Poroshenko says.
6. [We call for] depriving Russia of nearly ten billion dollars by denying to it an opportunity to provide uranium enrichment services and nuclear power plant construction. As an accomplice to the crimes of the Russian military at the Chornobyl and Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plants, RosAtom deserves the strictest possible sanctions. Let’s not forget that Russia itself is blackmailing the whole world with nuclear weapons.
7. About half of the aggressor’s gold and currency reserves worth of more than USD 300 billion dollars are now blocked. Over USD 130 billion worth of gold shall go illiquid for sure. So it is not enough to ban buying gold in Russia. Any possibility of using it for pledge or in other way should be blocked. Russian gold is bloody gold, Russian diamonds are bloody diamonds, especially if you take into account the dirty business of the Wagner group in the African countries, the plan reads.
Read the full text in English here.
Podcast Explaining Ukraine. The deep roots of Russia’s genocidal war
Can we call the current conflict a genocidal war? Why is Russia willing to eliminate Ukraine and Ukrainian identity? Why does it consider Ukraine an “artificial nation?” What are the deeper roots of Russia’s genocidal intentions? This is a new episode of the Explaining Ukraine podcast from UkraineWorld. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre.
How Kremlin propaganda tries to manipulate Western audience? Ukraine in Flames #326
Hybrid warfare is a significant element of the russian war. And therefore, we are continuing to talk about Kremlin propaganda fakes and debunking them. Among others, kremlin propaganda is trying to convince the world that Ukraine is incapable of winning this war via its multi-laved machine. Watch Ukraine in flames #326 to learn what methods and techniques they use to influence audiences in the European Union and the United States of America; and what steps the West is taking to protect itself.
Guests:
- Mykola Balaban, Deputy Head of the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security
- Valentyna Bykova, Head of Analytical Projects of the International Center for Countering Russian Propaganda
