Danmark vil levere F-16-fly til Ukraine, men de kommer på én betingelse.

Det forklarede forsvarsminister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen (V) søndag, hvor han uddybede, hvordan kampflyene konkret må bruges.

– I de andre våbendonationer, vi har lavet (til Ukraine, red.), er det en betingelse, at man bruger det til at forsvare sig, og det gælder også her, sagde han til TV 2.

Jakob Ellemann-Jensen pointerer mandag, at de 19 danske F-16-fly skal buges til at ”drive fjenden ud af Ukraines territorium”.

– Og ikke længere end det, lyder det fra Venstres formand ifølge Ritzau.

Men hvad betyder det, at kampflyene kun må bruges til forsvar af Ukraine?

Ifølge major og militæranalytiker Esben Salling Larsen fra Forsvarsakademiet vil det få den praktiske betydning, at F-16-flyene både kan beskytte Ukraine på landjorden og det ukrainske luftrum. Et forsvar indebærer konkret, at F-16-flyene kan benyttes til at angribe Rusland i de besatte områder af Ukraine. Läs artikel

Det brenner et blått lys for Wikileaks-grunnlegger Julian Assange. Tidligere i sommer avviste en britisk domstol anken hans mot beslutningen om å utlevere ham til USA, der han risikerer 175 års fengsel for spionasje.

Det siste halmstrået Assange har å klamre seg til, er muligheten for at et dommerpanel skal gå med på å gjenoppta saken. I helga samlet derfor hans norske støttespillere seg utenfor den britiske ambassaden på Frogner i Oslo, for å levere et brev med krav om å stanse utleveringen og sette Assange fri.

Markeringen ble åpnet med at film- og teaterlegende Liv Ullmann leste diktet «No man is an island» av den britiske barokkdikteren John Donne. […]

Hun er klar på hva hun mener bør skje med Assange.

– Han skal frikjennes. Han er en australier, og skal ikke utleveres fra England til Amerika og risikere en dom for det han opprinnelig gjorde: å avsløre forferdelig skittent spill fra amerikanerne. Det kan gjelde hvem som helst som gjør noe slikt, sier hun. Läs artikel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on Sunday (Aug 20), with energy security and Sweden’s membership of NATO on the agenda for both countries. […]

Both countries’ parliaments are currently on holiday. ”We can come back to the issue at the autumn session,” Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Facebook, ”We have agreed to stay in touch.”

The two countries have also discussed strengthening their energy cooperation, given that Hungary already receives a large proportion of its gas via the TurkStream pipeline, which transports Russian gas across the Black Sea. Läs artikel

Volodymyr Zelenskyj har fått sitt efterlängtade löfte om leverans av stridsplan av typen F-16 från Danmark och Nederländerna. På sociala medier skriver den ukrainske presidenten att det rör sig om många flygplan. ”42 plan. Och det är bara början.”

Increased Russian propaganda and sharpened rhetoric towards Finland have not surprised the Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF), General Timo Kivinen. […]

Finland is currently negotiating a bilateral Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA), with the United States, Nato’s most important member. Sweden has also opened similar negotiations with the US. Denmark is also negotiating and Norway has an agreement already in place. Kivinen clarified why a separate bilateral agreement with the US is necessary for Finland, despite being a member of a Nato.

”What Nato members do with each other also strengthens Nato’s collective deterrence and defence capabilities. It would be very strange if, now that we are allies, cooperation with allied countries did not deepen,” Kivinen replies.

According to Kivinen, the agreement allows for deeper military cooperation.

”In normal circumstances and also in a crisis situation, should one arise,” Kivinen pointed out. The United States is likely to have access to one port and one airport in Finland, should the need arise.

”Since the spring of 2020, a US unit has been deployed in Finland almost every week, with the longest deployment lasting more than two months. Any such exercise under the current model, where there is no treaty, would be prohibitively expensive,” Kivinen said.

According to Kivinen, the DCA agreement will help in the future with the practical organisation of US exercises in Finland. Läs intervjun

The Olenya Air Base south of Murmansk is again seen as a safe location for bombers from airports hit by Ukrainian drones.

Soltsy-2 was in the early morning hit by a drone. Russia’s Defense Ministry confirms the attack and says one aircraft was damaged due to a fire, Interfax reports. A Ukrainian war blogger reports on Telegram about two Tu-22M3 being damaged.

Soltsy-2 air base is located some 650 kilometers north of Ukraine and is home to the 840th Heavy Bomber Regiment. Russia has frequently used Tu-22M3 bombers to launch attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine. […]

The airbase is located an hour drive south of Murmansk and only some 150 km from Russia’s new border with NATO. After Finland joined the Alliance on April 4, US surveillance aircraft have on several occasions had missions in the country’s northern airspace with a clear view towards the Olenya air base to the east. Läs artikel

Statsminister Ulf Kristersson tog den 19 augusti 2023 emot Ukrainas president Volodymyr Zelenskyj i Sverige. Under besöket hölls överläggningar med deltagande av flera statsråd. Presidenten och hans hustru togs också emot av H.M. Konungen och H.M. Drottningen. Statsministern stod vidare värd för möten med bland andra Riksdagens talman, överbefälhavaren och samtliga partiledare.

Efter överläggningarna hölls en gemensam pressträff.

– Besöket visar de nära och starka relationerna mellan Sverige och Ukraina. Det visar att vårt stöd är viktigt och bidrar till Ukrainas försvar mot Rysslands fullskaliga invasion. Jag underströk än en gång att Sverige kommer att stötta Ukraina så länge som det behövs, säger statsminister Ulf Kristersson.

Under besöket undertecknade statsministern och president Zelenskyj en avsiktsförklaring (Statement of Intent) om stärkt samarbete mellan Sverige och Ukraina rörande Stridsfordon 90 (CV90). Vid pressträffen sade statsministern att avsiktsförklaringen är ett konkret tecken på Sveriges och Ukrainas gemensamma vilja att stärka samarbetet rörande produktion, utbildning och underhåll av CV90-plattformen. Läs pressmeddelande

The conversation about Ukraine’s counteroffensive has shifted from one of excitement to disappointment, as Kyiv’s slow gains lead some U.S. officials and insiders alike to whisper: Should we have listened to Gen. Mark Milliey?

In November, the Joint Chiefs chair said Ukraine’s strong military position and upcoming winter season combined to make a good time to consider peace talks. Plus, operations to expel Russian forces out of the whole of Ukraine –— which Volodymyr Zelenskyy demands — had a slim chance of success. Administration officials immediately scrambled to assure their counterparts in Kyiv that Milley was riffing and not reflecting a secret sentiment in the White House.

But listen to Milley lately, and you can hear the implicit “I told you so.”

“If the end state is Ukraine is a free, independent, sovereign country with its territory intact, that will take a considerable level of effort yet to come,” he told The Washington Post this week. “That’s gonna take a long, long time, but you can also achieve those objectives — maybe, possibly — through some sort of diplomatic means.” Läs artikel

Amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, speakers in the Security Council today examined the justification and consequences of arms supplies from the West to Kyiv, with many arguing that these weapons support that country’s self-defence against the Russian Federation’s invasion and others expressing concern that such military assistance makes a peaceful settlement a distant hope. […]

In the same vein, Albania’s delegate, noting that information on arms transfers to Ukraine is open data, said that such transfers are legal and justified.  Further, Article 51 of the UN Charter provides a clear legal basis for individual States to offer assistance to a country exercising its inherent right to self-defence. […]

Echoing that, Japan’s delegate said that arms supplies are driven by Ukraine’s necessity to protect itself, saying:  “Rather than suggesting that support for Ukraine will imperil diplomatic efforts, Russia should immediately withdraw all its troops and military equipment from Ukraine”.

Sergio Franca Danese (Brazil), recognizing the right of self-defence under Article 51 of the Charter, said that the increasing flow of weapons into the conflict in Ukraine assumes that there is a military solution to this conflict.  However, the massive and ongoing introduction of arms into that country can erode the potential for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, making a de-escalation of hostilities less likely.  Expressing concern about the risk that transferred arms end up in the hands of non-State actors, including criminal and terrorist groups, he called on Member States to adhere to the Arms Trade Treaty and other international instruments to prevent such diversions.  Innocent civilians should never be targets of military operations, he stressed, urging the parties to prevent harm to residential areas, energy and transport infrastructure, including ports and human lives.  “Only a political solution, taking into account the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and the legitimate security concerns of all parties, will bring a lasting peace,” he said. Läs referatet