By Simon Johnson
LINKOPING, Sweden (Reuters) -Sweden has signed a letter of intent that could see it supply up to 150 of its domestically produced Gripen fighter jets to Ukraine, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on Wednesday after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
The two leaders met for talks in Linkoping in southern Sweden and visited Saab, which is the maker of the JAS 39 Gripen fighter, the GlobalEye surveillance aircraft, missile systems, anti-tank infantry weapons and other equipment.
Kristersson told a news conference the two countries had signed a long-term cooperation agreement over air defences. The cooperation included the possibility of exporting 100 to 150 new Gripen E fighter jets in what would easily be Sweden's biggest ever aircraft export order.
"We fully realise it's a long road ahead of us," Kristersson said with a Gripen in Swedish livery in the background.
"But from today we are committed to exploring all the possibilities in providing Ukraine with a large amount of Gripen fighters in the future."
ZELENSKIY DESCRIBES GRIPEN JETS AS A PRIORITY
The possibility of supplying Gripens to Ukraine has been under consideration over the past two years but was put on hold to allow Kyiv to focus on the introduction of American-made F-16 fighters that it began deploying last August.
"We have started the work to obtain Gripens to Ukraine and expect the future contract to allow us to acquire no less than 100 such jets," Zelenskiy said, speaking through a translator.
Ukrainian pilots have been in Sweden to test the Gripen and help smooth any eventual export of the jets, a rugged and relatively low-cost option compared to aircraft such as the U.S. F-35.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine aimed to receive and start using Swedish Gripen jets next year. "For our army, Gripens are a priority. It is about money, about manoeuvres," he told the press conference.
Kristersson said that nothing was decided yet but estimated that production and delivery of the first new aircraft could take three years. There was no decision on shipping older-model Gripens sooner though this had not been ruled out, he added.
SIGNIFICANT WORK AHEAD ON FINANCING, SWEDISH PM SAYS
The financing of the procurement could come via frozen Russian assets held in Western countries and from allied nations in the coalition of the willing, but there was still significant work to be done before a final deal is signed, Kristersson said.
Justin Bronk, air warfare expert at London's Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said the potential deal showed Ukraine was thinking about longer-term planning for its post-war air force, rather than a solution to immediate combat needs.
Ukraine already has U.S.-made F-16 and French-made Mirage 2000 fighter jets. The Gripen E would "hypothetically represent a significantly more capable medium-weight fighter", Bronk said.
He pointed in particular to the aircraft's radar, internal electronic warfare systems and capability to carry and launch the long-range Meteor air-to-air missile as advantages.
The Gripen has been in commission since 1996 and Saab has produced around 280 of the planes in total. Shares in the company were up 3.3% at 1515 GMT.
Sweden has ordered 60 of the latest Gripen E model and Saab is increasing capacity in Linkoping, aiming to be able to produce 20 to 30 planes per year at the plant in a couple of years. Saab is also building Gripens in Brazil.
Before arriving in Linkoping, Zelenskiy briefly touched down in Oslo where the Norwegian government announced it was donating another 1.5 billion Norwegian crowns ($149.4 million) to Ukraine for the purchase of natural gas to secure electricity and heating.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom, Niklas Pollard, Johan Ahlander and Simon Johnson in Sweden, Yuliia Dysa, Olena Harmash Kyiv, Tom Balmforth in London; writing by Niklas Pollard and Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus, Clarence Fernandez and Alison Williams)
