NBC NEWS NOW: Air support could help Ukraine hold out against Russian forces

An emerging plan to have Poland give Ukraine it’s Soviet-era MiGs in exchange for the promise of newer U.S. models could go a long way to helping Ukraine survive the ongoing Russian invasion.

“If we can get equipment, lethal means, especially for air reinforcement, to the Ukrainians, they’ve been pretty good at air defense on their own,” AUSN Executive Director Jason Beardsley said on NBC News Now. “They just need the gear and the equipment. It doesn’t matter that it’s a little bit old. They need to take control of their skies if we’re not going to do it.”

Beardsley said Ukrainians have a chance at holding out for a long time against the Russian invaders if they are well supplied. He noted that insurgents in Afghanistan kept U.S. forces busy for decades.

“What the Russians did was gamble that this would be a quick strike, they would get in there and cause the government to flee, install a pro-Putin government,” Beardsley said. “That did not happen. Now they’re stretched out.”