GOP Senators call on Biden to change position on Polish warplane offer to Ukraine

by mcardinal

Chris Lange, FISM News

 

More than 40 Republican senators are calling on President Biden to reverse course and allow the transfer of air power and air defense systems to Ukraine after the Pentagon said the U.S. does not support Poland’s proposal to send its MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.

“While we commend the lethal aid that your Administration has sent to Ukraine thus far, we strongly disagree with your decision to delay and deny Poland the option to transfer fighter jets to Ukraine,” the senators wrote.

“Your Administration champions the $1 billion in defense articles provided to Ukraine over the past 13 months and has definitively stated there are no restrictions in your current suite of authorities to adequately respond to Russia’s lawless and bloody invasion of Ukraine,” they continued. “We implore you to direct your Department of Defense to facilitate the transfer of aircraft, air defense systems, and other capabilities by and through our NATO partners immediately.” 

The letter to the President was led by Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and signed by a majority of their GOP Senate colleagues.

The Pentagon on Wednesday said the U.S. would not accept Poland’s offer to provide Ukraine with all of its MiG-29 fighter jets through an American air base in Ramstein, Germany, citing fears that the move would be viewed by the Kremlin as an escalation that could end up drawing NATO into the war.

“The intelligence community has assessed that the transfer of MiG-29s to Ukraine may be mistaken as escalatory and could result in significant Russian reaction that might increase the prospects of a military escalation with NATO,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said at a press briefing. “Therefore, we also assess the transfer of the MiG-29s to Ukraine to be high-risk,” he continued, adding that the U.S. is already providing Ukraine with the weapons it requires to counter Russian forces. 

Republican leaders objected to the decision to block the transfer and have accused the Biden administration of kowtowing to the Kremlin.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) also slammed U.S. officials for “failing to help Poland” during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Thursday. Cotton grilled Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Scott Barrier about the administration’s refusal to accept Poland’s proposal, calling the very public miscommunication a “fiasco.”

“It seems to me that Vladimir Putin has simply deterred the US government from providing these aircraft by stating they [Russia] would view this as escalatory,” said the senator, who asked Haines to provide insight into how the intelligence community arrived at this conclusion. 

Haines responded by echoing the Pentagon’s position, claiming that “the transfer of these airplanes could be perceived as a significant escalation by the Russians.”

“I appreciate your analysts, and their deep expertise and knowledge about this,” Cotton pressed. “I’m asking what specific evidence, information, intelligence do they have that the transfer of these aircrafts — as opposed to anti-aircraft missiles that shoot Russian jets out of the sky — is going to be viewed as escalatory?”

Without responding directly to the question, Haies said intelligence analysts were “looking at a body of intelligence, and they’re also providing their own knowledge and experience.”

“We can address this in a closed setting, but here’s my opinion,” Cotton replied with visible frustration. “You don’t have new intelligence. This is opinion, and in many cases, this is policymakers looking to the intelligence community to provide them cover for their hesitancy.”

Following the hearing, the Senator blasted President Biden’s submissive approach to Putin’s aggression at the cost of Ukrainian lives.

“Polish MiGs aren’t any more ‘escalatory’ than the anti-aircraft missiles already sent to Ukraine; President Biden is just choosing to drag his feet on the transfer,” he said.

Ukraine has repeatedly pleaded with NATO to supply its forces with fighter jets and establish a no-fly zone to help it defend itself against Moscow’s brutal and relentless air and ground assaults, but the White House has so far refused the requests. 

The U.S. has provided $1 billion to Ukraine to help shore up its military defense systems over the past year and has been supplying Ukrainian forces with defensive weapons and other military equipment since Russia invaded on Feb. 24. The House on Tuesday also approved an additional $14 billion in military and humanitarian aid.

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