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Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky has been urging the U.S. and its NATO allies to either impose a No-Fly Zone or Air Combat Zone over Ukraine to prevent Russian air attacks or supply the Ukrainian forces with more planes of their own.

In a press conference with Ukrainian media on March 4, Zelensky said, "I hope the sky will be shut down. If you don't have strength and courage to do that, then give me the planes. Wouldn't that be fair?"

This was not the first time Zelensky had expressed such wishes, saying in an earlier statement, "If you do not have the power to close the skies, then give me planes! If we are no more, then, God forbid, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia will be next."

No Fly Zone risks direct conflict with Russia and nuclear war

So far, U.S. president Biden and other NATO allies have refused to enforce the No Fly or Air Combat Zone over Ukraine.

NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg announced their decision after an urgent meeting of the alliance on March 5.

According to Al Jazeera, Stoltenberg said that NATO has a responsibility to prevent the war from escalation.

What is a No Fly/Air Combat Zone?

This is a ban on aircraft over a specific area. It can be used during peacetime, such as banning aircraft from flying over a specific area for security reasons.

During a military conflict, this can be imposed to prevent the enemy from launching attacks by air. NATO imposed such a zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the late 1990s and in 2011 over Libya.

However, this entails a use of force, such as shooting down aircraft that defy the No Fly Zone, or destroying anti-air defences.

New York Times reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that announcing and enforcing a No Fly Zone would be viewed as participation in the "armed conflict", as he calls it.

With Russia having placed its nuclear forces on high alert, NATO is likely keen to avoid further escalating the war.

Send planes instead

However, the U.S. is instead looking at other ways they can help Ukraine fight for control of the skies, which a senior U.S. defence official told CNN  remain contested after more than a week of the war.

In an interview with CBS, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that NATO members had the go-ahead to deliver their own fighter jets to Ukraine if they wanted.

"That gets a green light," he said, responding to a question of whether the Polish government could deliver planes to Ukraine. Poland is a NATO member.

Blinken added that the White House is discussing how to "backfill" the Polish government's needs if they do transfer their fighter jets to the Ukrainians, possibly by replacing them with U.S.-made F-16 jets.

However, there are some concerns about the sensitive avionics systems within the jets that may not be legal for the U.S. government to perform such a transfer, according to Politico.

Poland would likely be handing over its stock of older MiG-29 jets, the most common plane in the Ukraine Air Force, as Forbes reported before the war began.

Not a done deal yet

Poland has not confirmed whether it would be taking such a step, according to Politico.

On Monday (U.S. time), White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that while the Biden Administration does not oppose such a deal, there are significant logistical challenges.

Defense News also quoted Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby who further downplayed the potential deal, saying that discussions are in the early stages and it's not a "done deal".

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Top image from Getty Images.

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