Venstre’s Guri Melby is now asking the government to step up and say whether Norway will send F-16 aircraft to Ukraine.

As recently as May 3, when Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre met Zelensky in Helsinki, Støre flatly said no to contributing fighter jets to Ukraine, writes Dagens Næringsliv.

Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp) is evasive.

We are constantly considering new donations to Ukraine, but do not comment on concrete future contributions, says Gram.

Venstre’s Guri Melby thinks little of the government’s silence. She calls for clearer speech.

It would be right for Norway to express what our position is now, and not just wait for what other countries say. We should be positive about Western countries sending planes, and state it very clearly, because it can be important for clarifications needed in other countries, says Melby.

Melby herself believes that Norway should both agree to send our fighter planes and to train Ukrainian pilots on Norwegian soil if applicable.

If it is possible for Norway to donate aircraft, then I think we should do it. Now there are more people who have spoken positively about the donation of combat aircraft, so we will not be first but will contribute to a coalition with countries with which we have a tradition of working together. Now is the right time to signal that if there is to be a donation, then we can make it, she says.

Western countries face a “colossal risk” if they send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said, according to Russian news agency TASS.