Biden's 'no' on F-16s for Ukraine met with skepticism in Pentagon - The Washington Post

The conjecture among U.S. defense officials follows the commander in chief’s one-word response on Monday when a reporter asked outside the White House if he would send F-16s to Ukraine.

Another senior defense official acknowledged that there is growing frustration in the Pentagon among those who want to do more to help Ukraine but find their views stymied by others who favor a more cautious approach.

This official said that while Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and some of his senior staff were reluctant to approve the Abrams tanks and, weeks before that, the advanced Patriot missile system, Biden eventually did so.

“The war remains fluid and dynamic, so the nature of our support will continue to adapt and evolve as necessary to give Ukraine the training, equipment and capabilities they require to be effective on the battlefield,” Ryder said.

An assessment of the air war over Ukraine by the Royal United Services Institute in London found that Russian pilots have remained “highly effective and lethal” against their Ukrainian counterparts, thanks to long-range missiles on their aircraft and superior technology overall.

The Ukrainians want the F-16, in part, because there are more than two dozen nations that fly them, creating a large pool of potential donors, said David Deptula, a retired Air Force lieutenant general.