I'll reveal what's going on: an exclusive interview with Reznikov about the F-16, Taurus and Crimea

Exclusive interview with Alexei Reznikov/Channel 24 Collage

Ukrainian pilots have already started training on F-16 fighter jets. This is a big progress in working with our partners. In addition, work continues on obtaining German Taurus missiles.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, in anexclusive interview with Channel 24, said that our state has already sent an official request to the German government regarding the supply of Taurus to us. Read more details further in the material.

Details of the F-16 pilot training that have begun 16

Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that Ukraine will receive the F-16 immediately after the completion of the exercises of our pilots. At the same time, Jens Stoltenberg said that the final decision had not yet been made. What is happening with the aviation coalition now?

We'll have to reveal a bit what's going on in order to have the right expectation. Often, on the basis of various announcements, reasoning, expert opinions, people draw not entirely substantiated conclusions. Against this background, expectations are built, and then disappointment, because they are not met.

There is a fundamental political decision of the partner countries that are part of the so-called aircraft coalition. This was recorded at the summit in Vilnius – 11 countries that are part of this coalition signed a memorandum that they are starting a project to train Ukrainian pilots, technicians, engineers so that they can operate the F-16. The leadership then took and still remains the Netherlands and Denmark.

Of course, if there was no political understanding that Ukraine could have F-16 in its arsenal, then there would be no point in giving consent to teaching. In addition, any country can even offer to study on such aircraft if it has permission from the United States, because they, relatively speaking, hold a license, because this is their product.

This means that they received consent to study and, accordingly, showed such an initiative. Today, Ukrainian pilots, engineers and technicians in a certain number and composition are already in place and have begun the project.

So the exercises have already begun?< /em>

I would not like to comment on what colleagues from Berlin and Washington communicate with each other but you are correct in your assumption. When there was a discussion about tanks, it was important for the German government to make a decision that their tanks were not the first on the battlefield in Ukraine against Russia. our territories/MBDA Deutschland

Therefore, in our communications, we convinced partners from Great Britain, France and the USA to provide us with the Challenger, Abrams and light French tanks AMX-10, and this gave more political courage to the German colleagues to take a decision on the Leopard.

To date, a coalition of means of destruction from the aircraft to the ground of the “long arm” has already been created. It already has the French and the British. Therefore, when the decision is made by the German government, they will join the existing coalition, therefore they will not be the first.

What stands behind “cotton” in Russia

We cannot strike at the territory of Russia with the means provided by our partners. On the other hand, they admit that we can hit targets on Russian territory, and military targets are absolutely legal in terms of warfare. In your opinion, why is there actually such a contrast between what we can hit, but only with our weapons?

This is a contrast for us, but for them conditions for conducting international activities of each country. They proceed from their own interests and help us, proceeding from their own interests. Each country makes decisions with an understanding of what for them is an increase in the level of escalation of their interaction with Russia, what is not.

What's nice is that this level of escalation is evolving. During my cadence, I passed this level quite seriously, because the first thing I asked my partners for was ordinary Stingers. It was November 2021. Everything else was impossible: tanks, 155mm artillery, HIMARS, planes, Patriot.Now everything is possible.

Indeed, the fundamental condition is written guarantees to our partners that we will not use weapons of destruction on the territory officially recognized by Russia. But every time we emphasize that we will use weapons to de-occupy the temporarily occupied Ukrainian lands located within the internationally recognized borders of 1991.

I always emphasize to partners, To be honest. And this means that Crimea, Donetsk, Lugansk are Ukraine. Therefore, we can use to destroy the enemy or his supply chains.

This evolution has taken place. Every time we do something ourselves, the help of the West comes. I will recall the first case. April 2022, we could not get anti-ship weapons – Harpoon anti-ship missiles. For various reasons – technical or otherwise – everything did not work out.

After two Ukrainian works “Neptune” sent the flagship of the Russian fleet “Moskva” to the bottom of the Black Sea and have now created a modern future modern museum to visit at the bottom of the sea – we got the Harpoon.

And they helped us in the mission to liberate Serpent's Island. This made it possible to open a grain corridor and transport Ukrainian grain, feeding the countries of Africa, Asia, etc. . The same goes for other things. When “cotton” blooms on the territory of Russia, then it was either someone who smoked where it was forbidden, or it was some kind of Ukrainian product.

If“cotton” is blooming in temporarily occupied territories, it could be both.

Crimea and strengthening our air defense system

Is it possible for our troops to enter the Crimea before the transfer of Taurus or ATACMS fighters and long-range missiles to us?

I will not undertake to answer. It is rather a question of the situation at the front: how events will develop, how our guys will move in offensive operations, how defense operations will be carried out, what will be the development of support for the Russian armed forces – there are many factors. What will the weather be like. Even she is a serious factor: whether it rains or not, whether there is a winter with snow or frost or not.

I would not like to make such assumptions or predictions. We are already doing the impossible, surprising the whole world since February 24, 2022. And even today's counter-offensive we are doing without dominance in the air, which, in principle, is practically impossible by the standards of modern NATO countries. But we do.

Our fleet is limited, but there is. We have the ability to launch missiles from the Su-24. The Financial Times writes that the Russians in their attacks on the territory of Ukraine have now focused on destroying the runways so that our pilots could not take off and, accordingly, use modern Western missiles. How do our partners in the West perceive the challenge and should we expect that our air defense will be strengthened?

Partners received this as a challenge on October 10, 2022. We've been talking about closing the sky since the early days. It sounded, but we were not heard. Heard, but not perceived. Therefore Patriot were impossible. We were given short-range air defense systems – Starstreak, Stinger, etc. But the fundamental decision was made when I arrived at Ramstein.

October 10 was the first massive shelling of Ukraine by the Russians, and it really struck the partners. I just remember the eyes of all the ministers of defense that were on Ramstein, and that's when they started talking seriously about the need to protect critical infrastructure, universities, hospitals, residential buildings, etc.

On October 11, for the first time, it was announced that Spain was ready to transfer Hawk systems to us. After that, progress followed. There was a NASAMS solution before, but then they came to IRIS-T, Hawk, Gepard, and today – Patriot. And it goes on, we have SAMP/T. That is, there are already different air defense weapons and the partners do not stop there.

Patriot air defense system/Getty Images

I know a lot of their contracts, projects that they have concluded with their manufacturers for the manufacture of systems and missiles for them for the needs of Ukraine. To say that tomorrow the partners will close the entire sky over Ukraine would be wrong, because it is impossible so quickly.

Therefore, we have a combined system: the old Soviet, which was in service, and the modern, gradual one. Of course we will move. And in general, the concept of the development of the Defense Forces – Future Force Concept, on which we are already seriously working together with partners, will providemodern air defense system in Ukraine.

After all after our victory, unfortunately, Russia will not fly into space. She will remain our neighbor. In the sick imagination of Russians, the idea of ​​revenge may exist, so you and I need to prepare.

When there is a new Ramshine

< em>Regarding “Rammstein” one gets the impression or may get the impression that his role has been declining lately. Is this really true?

No, you definitely cannot draw such conclusions or assumptions, because Rammstein is a joint working group for defense support to Ukraine. In fact, we work between Ramsteins.

The work lasts 24/7, because the defense ministers of Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Canada live in different time zones. Europe the same. Therefore, 24 to 7 phone calls, video conferences, some visits on a bilateral, trilateral basis.

“Rammstein” is milestones, only there are not 12, but 11 a year. Because in August there is no Rammstein for the second year in a row, because, as a rule, all defense ministers have a rest somewhere. Therefore, Lloyd Austin (US Secretary of Defense – Channel 24) and I talked about this so that there would be no deputies. It can be done, it will not be of fundamental importance, because “Ramsteinov” 11.

Meeting “Ramstein”/Military

As a rule, two face-to-face, one – online. They alternate. One is at the Ramstein base, one is online, one is in Brussels. Because when in Brussels, there are very often ministeriums of NATO defense ministers.

So“Rammstein” cannot lose its weight and importance because the task is changing, progress is being made. We have received weapons. Except for the remainder – aircraft and certain means of destruction, we have almost what we would like to have. I mean, as I always joke, my Santa wishlist is almost full.

But the content of these weapons and equipment is a question. Spare parts, operational support, post-combat recovery is a serious challenge. We will not be able to overcome this challenge on our own, but only together with partners and their industry.

Therefore, the task is to increase the number of spare parts for tanks, artillery, new gun barrels, more shells, mines, etc.

By the way, not only defense ministers always talk about this at Ramstein, but Jens Stoltenberg as NATO Secretary General, Josep Borrell as a representative of the EU. This is a very high level of dialogue, which gives us advantages every time. Therefore, I ask you to take Rammstein as a very serious platform.

Is the date of the next Ramstein already known?

< p dir="ltr">Known. Tentatively, this will be a week from September 18. It will be full-time, offline. At Ramstein Air Base.”

Can we say what the key issues will be in the discussion?

In fact, I can now voice the key questions to you, because fundamentally they will not change much. All the same, air defense with all its components remains a priority for us. More systems – more missiles, more radars. Also aviation as part of air defense.

The second thing is artillery and ammunition for it, ammunition.

< p dir="ltr">Third thing is what I call a “fist of steel” – armored vehicles of all kinds: from armored personnel carriers, armored cars, tanks, armored Medevacs – a vehicle for the evacuation of the wounded, and all kinds of spare parts for them.

Next thing – we are working on the future concept of the Ukrainian Defense Forces. This means that our partners must understand how they can determine the long planning horizon for themselves: their budgets, the acceleration of their production.

They will support us, but each country must understand why. Let's say we have 2 types of Leopard: Leopard 1 and Leopard 2. What does this mean? And this means that on the basis of the Leopard 1, the Gepard, the Marder armored vehicle, rides on its chassis. That is, someone has to repair, maintain. Leopard 2 also needs to be serviced by someone.

So, the complex of all these things and the training of our military personnel, updating and forming new brigades (topics that will be climb “Ramstein – Channel 24”).

Thanks to our partners for giving us this opportunity. In almost all countries, training is underway either with specific types of weapons and equipment, or the usual training of a young fighter from the trench, tactical medicine, providing assistance, storming trenches, etc.

Are the partners disappointed with the pace of the counteroffensive

According to the University of Kiel, the amount of declared assistance from Western partners, if we compare the spring and winter periods, has decreased over the spring period. This is given that we were actively preparing for a counteroffensive. In addition, analysts there say that in 2023 Ukraine received only more than half of what was promised. Can we say that this data is true and that this is a trend?

I am not ready to comment, I am not familiar with these data, and they need to be checked. I can say that I agree that there is such a volatile approach. Because what was declared was delivered and we already have it. It was immediately at its peak there, if you count in money. And it started to apply.

Next comes support. It costs less: spare parts, ammunition, etc. Some new wave. It's hard for me to comment on this. It doesn't seem to be entirely relevant. I can say one thing: this is definitely not a pessimistic forecast, because in monetary terms, none of the partners fell down. It's just that many partners no longer have some kind of weapon.

Especially our very friendly, fraternal countries: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Luxembourg, Poland. They gave a lot. As a percentage of their GDP, they are champions. But they don't have the same budgets as the US, UK, Germany or France, because they are champions in terms of volume.

But in percentage these small countries will be champions. They give everything they can because they believe in our victory. We must defeat the enemy on the battlefield. And the enemy for them all is Russia. That's why you can't measure like that here.

At the same time, today they launched investments in production, humanitarian aid, and hospitals. Everyone does what they can. Therefore, no, I definitely do not want to evaluate these data with skepticism.

So there is no downward trend in Western aid?

Definitely not. Even now, there are official reports that the US, represented by the President, has already applied to their representative body to increase financial support this year. Everyone lives in budget terms.

Also don't forget: it's summer, parliamentary recess. Of course, no decisions were made. Now autumn will begin – the political activity of parliaments that make certain decisions will revive.

In addition, they will all begin an internal budget process, where they will decide how much money they should put into its defense capability and assistance to Ukraine next year.

Why is Rammstein in the fall important?Because we will communicate about our vision of the future for the coming years, so that our partners also hear it from us, assess where they are ready to be with us next, and put it in their budget plans.

In recent months, there have been many publications, statements in Ukraine and in the West about our counteroffensive. Some say that the counteroffensive seems to be slow, our partners are allegedly disappointed because of this. Others wrote that Ukraine took into account the mistakes allegedly made during the offensive operation, changed tactics, and now we should expect more large-scale actions. Others say that everything is moving according to plan. What's really going on?

At first I tried to mostly read what people wrote. Then I realized that it had absolutely nothing to do with reality, and stopped reading it.

I can say that when I communicate with partners at my level – and these are the ministers of defense of countries, chiefs of general staffs, advisers, deputies, being in a delegation with our president, leaders of countries and being at these bilateral meetings – it never sounded anywhere that they are disappointed, they think badly. This is not so.

No matter what anyone tells you, no matter what important Western publication writes about it. This is nonsense, fictional gossip. Everyone who has anything to do with war clearly understands that this is war. And not a series, they say, I want everything to be according to the script, the Hollywood plot. Now there will be victory, the last word of the hero, but he will not die. It doesn't happen.

We have a very powerful enemy with a powerful defense system that he built while you and I prepared. Everyone was talking about our counteroffensive, everyone was watching how we were going. Everyone wants us to tell where we went and what we took.

But you must admit that the Ukrainian military-political leadership also fueled this topic with their statements.

We have always said with our statements: “People, we are doing our military affairs, let's not interfere in them. Our task is to provide the Defense Forces with the maximum number of weapons and equipment.” What we've been doing publicly is to communicate with our partners about our needs.

It's about accelerating, increasing, improving and making political decisions when they still doubted what to give us and what is not. But we never said that tomorrow we will soon do everything. It's not.

People confuse two operations, trying to combine them: Kherson and Kharkov. Because Kharkiv was very fast, and Kherson was slow. But, thank God, both were successful. Just remember that Kherson took place for several months, was being prepared, was being done. Because the key value for us is the life of our servicemen, defenders and defenders. Unlike the Russians, who are used as “cannon fodder”.

AFU set a flag in the liberated Kherson region/Andriy Yermak

We are not the Soviet army of the times of Zhukov of the Second World War, which, as General Valery Zaluzhny told me, put one and a half million souls into the ground just for the liberation of Izyum. Only for the liberation of Izyum from the Germans.

We don't fight like that. We fight with understanding, with maneuver, with the task of fire destruction, using the advantages of technology. But if the fields are densely mined there, then the guys at night will gradually clear them on foot. In order not to lose equipment and brothers. Therefore, we move as circumstances permit. But the main thing is that we are moving forward.

War in Ukraine is unprecedented will change the world

Now you can see more and more comparisons of our war with the First World War. Military experts call what is happening at the front now a trench war of attrition. The First World War lasted 4 years. In your opinion, what stage are we in our war now: at the beginning, in the middle or closer to the end?

I will not answer your question where we are now. I'm not a military man, it's really hard for me to judge. But I can say that in my communications with our commanders, starting from the Commander-in-Chief, his team and ending with brigade commanders, they compare this war with World War II, not with World War I.

Because in the Second World War there was already powerful artillery, powerful tanks, armored vehicles, weapons and trench warfare in particular. The worst thing is that a huge human resource was involved, and the front line was huge. The same thing is happening now.

If you think about it, there hasn't been any similar war in the world for the last 80 years. And here, not only the signs of a classic war are superimposed, but also modern technologies. In World War II, there were no drones, aerial reconnaissance and such dense mining. Therefore, this is such a fusion of the Second World War and the war of the future.

All future wars will no longer be so conventional – they will be technology wars, drone wars, and so on.

So today When we think about the Future Force Concept – the concept of our future Defense Forces, we are already talking about the fact that even universities need to train completely different specialists: aerial reconnaissance officers, drone pilots and not only flying ones. But also crawling, jumping, diving. Engineers who will create and maintain them.

The Minister of Education has already announced that schoolchildren will be taught how to operate drones, and now work is underway to draw up a program.

We are already talking about this with colleagues, members of the government . This “collective of like-minded people” includes not only the Minister of Education, but also the Minister of Strategic Industry, the Minister of Sports, the Minister of Veterans, and the Minister of Finance. Almost every minister thinks about it from his own point of view.

But to say where we are is very difficult. But remember where we were in March 2022, when there was semi-surrounded Kyiv, semi-surrounded Kharkov, Chernihiv, Sumy, Snake Island. We have de-occupied a lot of territories. Some were faster, some were slower. All in all, it's hard.

I recently spoke with the military, they interviewed some captured Russians. Under the influence of propaganda, some, mostly paratroopers, have the following opinion: it's like Afghanistan, while the contingent of the Soviet Union is there, they have some kind of international duty. They really think they're doing some useful, noble cause.

And this war will end when something changes in the minds and there. Now it is difficult to predict. My personal feeling is that it will be unexpected. For 30 years of development of Ukraine, the Armed Forces did not have such a quantity of modern weapons, we could not even dream that they would give us them. The war itself – its open part since 2022 – gave impetus to this.

Today we do not have time to document weapons and military equipment provided by partners. But we take it into action right away. These are thousands of units of different weapons, which we never had. This is not a step – this is a leap, progress. Partners are already beginning to realize that we are indeed the eastern shield of Europe, NATO.

Are they only now beginning to realize this?

Yes. I told them about it from the first days, but they did not perceive it. Just as they did not perceive that Kyiv would not fall in three days. They were convinced that Kyiv would be captured in three days, and Ukraine in a week, and then there would be a guerrilla war. Their intelligence, analysts talked about it. And that is why we were not given modern weapons, except for purely partisan, small arms.

Serious weapons began to be given when they saw that we would fight to the last. I explained to them the difference. We are Europeans and they are Europeans, we have common needs and values, but there are priorities. The vast majority of Europeans, when comparing the values ​​of “freedom, will or security”, will choose security and lose freedom.

Think of the Second World War. Hitler entered the capital of many countries without resistance. It seems that the main thing for them is simply to survive. And this is what they tell our refugees today, they say, why don't you give up? or security” – we choose will and freedom, sacrificing security, so everyone fights with us.

In the early days, grandmothers poured Molotov cocktails, and grandchildren were ready to shoot, signed up as volunteers. In the first 2 days in the terrorist defense, machine guns were issued from KAMAZ trucks. This is a fact, maybe someone has already forgotten. I am not.

You will soon read the second part of the interview with Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov on the website of Channel 24.