Jake Sullivan: F-16s, Tanks We Provided to Ukraine Didn’t Make Much Difference, Ukraine Must Do Better

During an interview with “PBS NewsHour” aired on Monday, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan responded to criticism of the Biden administration for delaying providing tanks and F-16s to Ukraine by stating that those haven’t made a significant difference on the battlefield and “the straightest line between Ukrainian performance and inputs” is “mobilization of manpower.” And “Ukraine needs to do more, in our view, to firm up its lines, in terms of the number of forces it has on the front lines.”

“NewsHour” Foreign Affairs and Defense Correspondent Nick Schifrin asked, “In the past, you’ve tried to avoid provoking the Russians from escalating, at times. You didn’t provide tanks, and then you did decide to make that decision to provide tanks. You didn’t provide F-16s, then you did provide those F-16s. Do you believe, at this point, looking back, if you had provided any of those authorizations earlier, it would have made a difference to Ukraine in the war?”

Sullivan responded, “Have we seen a marked difference since we have provided tanks to Ukraine, in terms of the battlefield? Similarly, on F-16s, have we seen a marked difference? Our view has been that there’s not one weapons system that makes a difference in this battle. It’s about manpower. And Ukraine needs to do more, in our view, to firm up its lines, in terms of the number of forces it has on the front lines. It’s about munitions, and it’s about all of the other things that go to a country’s national strength, their morale, their cohesion, their industrial base.”

Schifrin followed up, “But I ask because Ukraine is losing more territory today than at any point this year. So, do you really believe that nothing the U.S. could have done earlier would have changed that?”

Sullivan answered, “We provided the tanks, we provided the F-16s, we provided the HIMARS, we provided the Patriots. We provided many of the things that you said earlier we wouldn’t provide. And it’s not back then, it’s rather today that Ukraine finds itself in a more challenged position on the battlefield, suggesting that there’s not a straight line between those weapons systems and how it does on the battlefield. Where is the straightest line between Ukrainian performance and inputs? It’s on mobilization of manpower.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett