Did Ukraine reject US fighter jets and instead sign deal with France for 100 Rafale fighter jets? Fact Check
Claim : Ukraine rejects US fighter jets and signs a deal with France for 100 Rafale fight jets.
Conclusion : The claim is misleading. Ukraine did sign a preliminary agreement for up to 100 French Rafale jets on November 17, 2025, but there is no evidence of rejecting US jets. Instead, Kyiv is pursuing a multi-nation diversification strategy, including US F-16s and Sweden’s Gripen E/F multirole fighter jets.
Rating : Misleading — 
Several social media users have recently claimed that Ukraine has rejected US fighter jets to sign a deal with France for 100 Rafale jets. Verified X user ‘MeghUpdates’ shared such a claim with the caption : Ukraine rejects US fighter jets and Sign a deal with France for 100 Rafale jets. Propaganda of US and Pakistan Busted. Success of Operation Sindoor?” This post gained more than 777,000 views and 34,000 likes which can be viewed below:
Ukraine rejects US fighter jets and Sign a deal with France for 100 Rafale jets🔥
Propaganda of US and Pakistan Busted 💥
Success of Operation Sindoor? pic.twitter.com/pxStOIYsHt
— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) November 17, 2025
View this post on Instagram
Other users have shared similar claims which can be seen here and here
FACT CHECK
DigitEYE India decided to investigate this claim and found that it is misleading. There is no credible evidence or reports from media outlets that suggest Ukraine has rejected US fighter jets for France’s Rafale. The claims suggesting that Ukraine has made this move after India’s successful Operation Sindoor is misleading, since there is no official statement about this.
We first conducted a web search with the phrase ‘Ukraine and France sign deal for 100 fighter jets’ to learn about the claim. On November 17, 2025, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron signed a 10-year letter of intent in Paris for Ukraine to acquire up to 100 Dassault Rafale F4 multirole fighter jets by 2035.
There has been confirmation of the French Rafale deal and the Office of the Ukrainian President has announced this on their official website. As per the announcement, the deal “concerns 100 Rafale F4 aircraft for Ukraine’s combat aviation by 2035, SAMP/T air‑defense systems, air‑defense radars, air-to-air missiles, and aerial bombs.” Additionally, there will also be “the possibility of technology transfer and joint aircraft production with localization in Ukraine.” View a screenshot of this below –
During a bilateral press event held on November 17, 2025, Zelenskyy briefed about the package: “Ukraine will be able to receive one hundred Rafale F4 aircraft, very powerful French radars, and eight SAMP/T air defense systems with six launchers each,” calling it a “strategic agreement” effective from 2026. He highlighted industrial cooperation to boost Ukraine’s defense sector. View the footage of this uploaded on the Youtube channel of FirstPost here.
However, none of the parties have mentioned rejecting US fighter jets or not accepting help. Following this, we also found that Ukraine is pursuing a strategy of diversification. For instance, Ukraine and Sweden signed a Letter of Intent for the potential acquisition of up to 100-150 JAS 39 Gripen E/F multirole fighter jets on October 22, 2025. This agreement, the first formal step toward a major export deal valued at potentially €20-30 billion over 10-15 years, aims to rebuild Ukraine’s air force.
Reports published by Business Insider mention how “The F-16, Gripen E, and Rafale F4 would be massive upgrades to Ukraine’s aging Soviet fleet.” This report also tells us that “Ukrainian pilots are already flying Lockheed Martin F‑16 Fighting Falcons donated by European NATO members, along with several French Dassault Mirage 2000 fighters.” View a section of the report below:
No where was it mentioned that Ukraine rejects U.S. fighter jets. Neither Trump nor Zelenskyy have released any official announcement about this.
Hence, claims of “rejection” appear only in unverified social media channels, lacking any proof or verified statements. The Rafale deal complements, not replaces, US and Swedish Gripen acquisitions.
Thus, the claim is misleading.
Read More :
