F-35 partners fully committed to program, Dutch defense minister says

PARIS – The associate international locations concerned within the Lockheed Martin F-35 stay absolutely dedicated to the fighter jet, and there’s no signal the US is altering course on the Joint Strike Fighter program, Dutch Minister of Defence Ruben Brekelmans mentioned.

“It’s within the curiosity of all of us to guarantee that the F-35 program stays operational, that it stays as profitable as it’s proper now, and I don’t see any indicators of the US backtracking,” Brekelmans mentioned in a press briefing on the Paris Defence and Technique Discussion board on Tuesday, in response to a query citing considerations the U.S. might remotely floor plane operated by allies.

“So, I don’t assume we should always speculate on this,” he added.

Some European researchers and lawmakers expressed concern in latest weeks that America may block allies from utilizing their F-35s, as U.S. President Donald Trump seems to more and more align with Russia and has threatened to annex Canada and Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.

European F-35 operators collaborate with the U.S. to arrange the mission information recordsdata important to working the jet, and plenty of depend on a U.S.-hosted cloud-based software program system for upkeep and updates.

The Netherlands as of September had acquired 40 F-35s out of 52 ordered. That very same month, the Dutch introduced plans to purchase one other six of the jets and formally retired their fleet of F-16s.

Brekelmans identified that the F-35 program depends on components from associate international locations, echoing an argument made by Belgian Minister of Defence Theo Francken in a tv interview Monday.

Francken dismissed feedback a couple of hypothetical F-35 “kill change” as “scaremongering tales,” additionally saying that if the U.S. would cease supplying components, that might “instantly fully shut down” the enterprise of your complete U.S. protection trade in Europe.

The U.S. is the “greatest associate, and we have to have them on board to be able to have a profitable F-35 program, however different international locations additionally play a key function,” Brekelmans mentioned, noting the stealth jet has some “important components that solely we produce.”

“In the long run, it’s good additionally for the energy of the US and for NATO and all of us that we have now essentially the most fashionable air pressure on this planet,” the Dutch minister mentioned. “Which means we should always all be absolutely dedicated. And up to now, that’s what I additionally see from the companions within the F-35 program.”

Lockheed Martin mentioned in a press release final week that the corporate delivers “all system infrastructure and information required for all F-35 prospects to maintain the plane.”

The F-35 capabilities in opposition to Russian air defenses can not presently get replaced or replicated with different platforms, Justin Bronk, senior analysis fellow for air energy on the U.Ok.’s Royal United Providers Institute, wrote in a social media publish on Monday.

“On the F-35 fears, I get it — there’s actual dependency,” Bronk mentioned. He added, nonetheless, that if international locations depend on the U.S. for concentrating on capability — past line-of-sight communications, ISR and munitions to combat a battle — then dependency on the U.S. for mission information recordsdata and software program “isn’t your fundamental drawback.”

Norway earlier this month acquired three extra F-35 plane, bringing its fleet to 49 jets out of 52 the nation has ordered. Denmark has acquired 17 fighters out of 27 ordered. Belgium has been much less superior in increase its fleet, receiving its first F-35 in December, with a complete of 34 on order. Poland, in the meantime, began coaching on its first F-35s in February.

The Netherlands continues to see the U.S. as a dependable NATO ally, however the People count on European international locations to step up and “do far more” on protection, based on Brekelmans.

”They don’t count on burden sharing, they do count on burden shifting,” Brekelmans mentioned. “We must always take that message severely, however we should always not speculate on any additional steps that the US is taking as a result of we merely can not assure our safety with out the U.S. at this second. That’s the actuality that we have now to work with.”

Brekelmans added that the Netherlands is ready to “severely discuss” about sending troops to Ukraine to safeguard any peace settlement with Russia. The minister mentioned he doesn’t consider a U.S. backstop is off the desk, even when there will probably be no American boots on the bottom.

“There are additionally different methods in which you’ll be able to present a backstop,” Brekelmans mentioned. “And it’s not solely nuclear. On this escalation ladder, there are a lot of steps in between, and we have to guarantee that we create these steps.”

Any mission in Ukraine would have to be clearly outlined and have “strong navy capabilities” to understand the outlined objective, Brekelmans added.

The Dutch minister mentioned “it’s superb” that French President Emmanuel Macron final week floated the thought of increasing the French nuclear deterrent to European allies. With China investing in nuclear capabilities and Russia issuing nuclear threats, “we additionally must have this dialog,” he mentioned.

“These conversations are very a lot in early phases and trade of statements and concepts,” Brekelmans added. “It’s not [like] proper now … with ministers of protection, that we have now classes about nuclear capabilities or one thing.”

As a part of this 12 months’s larger funds dialogue, the Dutch authorities will assess whether or not to lift protection spending above 2% of its GDP, based on Brekelmans. An extra proportion level would imply an extra €10 billion to €12 billion of spending, which “for the Netherlands is a critical amount of cash.”

The most important capability shortages for the Netherlands are within the land forces, and whereas the Dutch authorities is planning to purchase tanks, “the quantity we make investments is comparatively low,” Brekelmans mentioned. “We have to guarantee that our land forces develop into larger and stronger, with extra heavy gear and heavier weapon programs.”

The battle in Ukraine has proven that Dutch Military battalions and brigades want to have the ability to sustain the combat longer than three months, which suggests investing in enablers equivalent to provide chain, logistics and medical gear will probably be a precedence, the minister mentioned. Air protection will probably be one other focus.

“We want to verify we have now extra air protection programs, extra missiles, extra of all the pieces.”

Protection Information reporter Stephen Losey contributed to this report.