Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has rejected sending fighter jets to help
Ukraine defeat the Russian invasion. Speaking to Sky News a year after
the invasion started, Mr Wallace said that on the day Russian tanks
rolled in he told officials that they needed "to give Ukraine hope".

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1738860/ben-wallace-ukraine-fighter-jets-boris-johnson-president-zelensky-update

But after Boris Johnson last night renewed his calls for British
Typhoons to be sent to Ukraine, Mr Wallace insisted this morning: "We
will not be sending British Typhoons to Ukraine for now."

He added that the way the conflict has developed "you can never rule
anything in, and you can never rule anything out".

But he warned that the sophisticated equipment did not just require
pilots but a large amount of support staff.

He warned that "if you look at the tail" they need around 200 personnel
of engineers, electricians and others.

"We are obviously not going to send 200 RAF personnel into Ukraine."

He later added on Times Radio: "In the timescale of this conflict right
now, the ability for us to train pilots on Typhoons and then train them
on the fighting of Typhoon because fighting aircraft is a very
complicated layered process.

"And you also require about 200 people to look after the jets like a
Formula One pit crew... the West is not putting in RAF personnel or
other Air Force personnel into Ukraine.

Speaking last night, Mr Johnson told Sky News that "2023 must be the
year of victory for Ukraine."

He warned: "This is a decisive moment for the 21st century. If we allow
Putin to win it will send a signal around the world that national
borders can be changed by force."

But he insisted that meant that the UK needs to "break the ice" and be
the first to send fighter jets to Ukraine.

He went on: "If they need the kit sooner or later, if that's the choice
- sooner or later - then let's give it to them sooner."

But he warned: "This is an absolutely critical moment for the world."

Earlier this month, President Zelensky visited the UK and then Brussels
to make an appeal for fighter jets.

The jets are partly needed to provide air cover for the 200 tanks which
have already been gifted to Ukraine by Britain and NATO allies.

### - so tanks on their own CAN'T be a game-changer then, ya needs jets
as well to cover them to be effective? (sounds about right huh thang,
ukraine just desperate to get hold of anything it can at the mo' + who
can blame them...)

so then we're still all in the dark then as to what's really gonna go
down beyond the obvious current stalemate situation... fighting all
along the new 800-mile border in different places as russia digs-in +
establishes those borders, which, as far as they're concerned, is now
all part of russia itelf and thus protected/defended accordingly...

one interesting item was let-slip by some russian diplomat the other
day, however, this perhaps providing an insight into russia's hidden
motives/plans etc... and what he said, was that IF the west sends
'longer-range' weapons then it's only reasonable that the 'current'
borders then be extended to provide an effective 'buffer-zone' to
include these weapons as well??

iow: there's an implication here that the 'current' borders have been
drawn/designed merely to create a 'medium-range' buffer-zone against
ukraine's current 'medium-range' weapons, keeping them from firing
deeper into russia... and that IF ukraine acquires longer range
artillery then said 'buffer-zone' will perforce have to be extended
accordingly! (a clue?)

in which case + IF that's their idea, then russia likely WONT extend
itself much beyond the current border except perhaps to further secure
their current positions, right up to a medium-range designed limit...

a potentially interesting reveal huh...

thus counter to rumour, a spring push to capture 'more' territory ONLY
occurring if/when a larger buffer-zone becomes required, such as if/when
ukraine receives longer range equipment for example...

DON'T give them any longer range kit and the border will likely remain
where it is... DO provide it and there's gonna be an equivilent push to
capture more territory in order to widen that buffer-Zone!

which, IF correct, would also ultimately represent a somewhat
horror-scenario for the west, who can't possibly 'afford' to just sit
there for say the next 2, 3 years, or even longer, spending money like
dishwater as their economies shrink?? they can't possibly continue like
this!

and 'this' is now the problem, see? - that, if ya listen to the likes of
the boris & biden etc, we're obviously 'too proud' to capitulate with
russia now, and THAT leaves us with only ONE move left???

https://youtu.be/mDLS12_a-fk?t=67

(and they's just about stupid enough to do it too...)