Zelensky Moves to Make Swedish Gripens Operational and Rally Europe on Air Defense
He is pushing Sweden and France to fast‑track training, infrastructure and extra air‑defense aid to blunt Russia’s missile and drone campaign.
Overview
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson about boosting air defenses and countermeasures against Russian ballistic missiles and Shahed drones.
- Both Kyiv and Stockholm are actively working to put in place the infrastructure, pilot training and logistics needed to deploy Swedish JAS Gripen fighters for Ukraine’s air force on schedule.
- Ukraine’s defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov and Sweden’s Pål Jonson have discussed practical next steps to implement the Gripen supply and related support measures.
- Zelensky separately coordinated with French President Emmanuel Macron to align European diplomatic pressure and to press for additional air‑defense systems and political backing.
- The push responds to a sustained pattern of Russian long‑range missile and drone strikes that threaten civilians and critical sites, and ties into wider European plans for drone production and pooled air‑defense support.