President Zelenskyy and Swedish PM Ulf Kristersson have signed a deal which clears the best way for Ukraine to accumulate between 100 and 150 Saab Gripen fighter plane.
In a joint press convention held in entrance of a Gripen E plane at Saab’s facility in Linkoping, the 2 leaders introduced the mutual signing of a defence cooperation settlement. One a part of the settlement confirms Ukraine’s intent to modernise and broaden its air drive with doubtlessly over 100 Saab Gripen multirole fighter plane. This could characterize Sweden’s largest ever export order, and see the Ukrainian Air Drive function the same variety of the Swedish-designed and constructed plane to Sweden’s personal air drive.
No remaining selections have but been taken, with PM Kristersson estimating a timeframe of three years for the supply of new-build airframes. Zelenskyy, given the pressing state of affairs in his nation, wish to see plane delivered from 2026 – which might sign the potential of the switch of legacy Gripen C/D airframes forward of latest Gripen E/F jets.
Ukrainian pilots have already check flown Gripen airframes in Sweden, starting way back to 2023.
As we speak, we’re opening a wholly new and actually significant chapter in our relationships—relations between Ukraine and Sweden, and extra broadly, total safety relations in Europe.
As we speak, we’ve got the primary doc signed between our international locations, paving the best way for Ukraine to accumulate… pic.twitter.com/y23ouunOyY
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 22, 2025
The Gripen has lengthy been urged as a powerful choice for the rebuilding of Ukraine’s air drive each throughout and publish battle. Particularly designed to correspond with Swedish doctrine of working from makeshift ahead working places, the jet has good short-field efficiency and relatively easy upkeep necessities. The Gripen E/F, first delivered to the Swedish Air Drive solely days in the past, builds on its predecessor with elevated vary and payload, new avionics, and a nicely regarded digital warfare (EW) bundle.
I’m proud to have welcomed President Zelenskyy to Sweden and Linköping.
As we speak we’ve got signed an vital Letter of Intent, marking a step in direction of a large attainable export deal concerning Gripen – seemingly between 100 and 150 fighter jets, to construct a brand new and really robust… pic.twitter.com/ObUPKxdxfJ
— Ulf Kristersson (@SwedishPM) October 22, 2025
Talking on the press convention, Kristersson stated: “We absolutely realise it’s a protracted highway forward of us, however from at the moment we’re dedicated to exploring all the chances in offering Ukraine with a considerable amount of Gripen fighters sooner or later.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reaffirmed his ambition to see the jets in service as quickly as attainable. “For our military, Gripens are a precedence. It’s about cash, about manoeuvres,” he advised gathered reporters. Via his official social media channels he added: “We contemplate the JAS 39 Gripen plane to be one of the efficient components of this effort and depend on the primary deliveries of Gripens already in 2026.”
An vital assembly with the @SwedishPM Ulf Kristersson. We enormously worth our relationships with Sweden and all types of help for our folks. And at the moment, one of many key matters of our negotiations was strengthening Ukraine’s protection capabilities. We contemplate the JAS 39 Gripen… pic.twitter.com/iW5BxkSF6w
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 22, 2025
Among the many particulars but to be finalized is the funding for Ukraine’s order, which given the variety of jets meant to be procured will characterize a major expense and one which Ukraine may wrestle to search out the funds for by itself with warfare nonetheless raging.
The Gripens will be a part of F-16 Preventing Falcons and Dassault Mirage 2000s in Ukraine’s stock because the nation step by step strikes away from a Soviet/Russian derived fleet, which might not be supported by their authentic producers. The complete order of 100 Gripens would characterize a large enhance in Ukraine’s tactical air energy even by numbers alone, with essentially the most quite a few sort at present in service – the Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-29 – numbering solely round 45 airframes as compared.
Nonetheless, with Saab’s present manufacturing capability it’ll seemingly be some years earlier than plans for a fleet of Gripens of that dimension might be realised.
