Rishi Sunak continues to resist calls by former British prime minister Boris Johnson to supply fighter jets to Ukraine.
Mr Johnson has used a US tour to push for the West to step up military assistance for Kyiv, dismissing arguments against the supply of sophisticated Nato aircraft.
But Downing Street said it would take years to train Ukrainian pilots to fly the RAF’s Typhoon and F-35 planes and said the current UK prime minister was focused on providing support that would be of use now.
At an event hosted by the Atlantic Council think tank, Mr Johnson said: “I hear that an objection to their having sophisticated Western planes to fly is that they won’t know how to use them.
“Give the Ukrainians the tools to finish the job,” says @BorisJohnson at the @AtlanticCouncil. 🇺🇦🇬🇧
“The faster they win, the greater the savings in treasure and in lives.”
Watch more: ➡️ https://t.co/LlIyUEOF1H pic.twitter.com/k2QhFXMs0pAdvertisement— Atlantic Council (@AtlanticCouncil) February 1, 2023
“I have to say I take that argument with a bit of a pinch of salt.”
But in Downing Street, the prime minister’s official spokesman set out the practical difficulties in supplying British warplanes to Ukraine.
“We will continue listening to the Ukrainians and consider what is right for the long term,” the spokesman said.
“But it’s helpful to understand the situation, that the fastest training programme for a new pilot is approximately 35 months.
“The current UK fast jet training programme takes five years.”
Mr Sunak’s strategy was to “focus on how we can help Ukraine defend their country and push back this year”, the spokesman added.
Downing Street has previously stressed that Mr Johnson was “acting in his own capacity and not on behalf of the UK Government” during his visit to Washington.
