Netherlands Air Force F-16 fighter jets fly during a media day illustrating how NATO Air Police safeguards Allied airspace in the Alliance’s northern and northeastern region, on May 4. July 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/File Photo Purchase license rights
WASHINGTON, Aug 17 (Reuters) – The United States has approved sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine from Denmark and the Netherlands to fend off Russian invaders as soon as pilot training is complete, an official said on Thursday. US.
Ukraine has been actively seeking US-made F-16 fighter jets to help it counter Russian air superiority.
Washington gave official assurances to Denmark and the Netherlands that the United States will expedite the approval of transfer requests for the F-16s to go to Ukraine when the pilots are trained, the official said.
“We welcome Washington’s decision to pave the way for sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine,” Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said on the X messaging platform, formerly known as Twitter.
“Now, we will continue to discuss the issue with our European partners.”
Denmark also said that providing Ukraine with the planes would now be discussed.
“The government has said several times that a donation is the natural next step after training. We are discussing it with close allies, and I hope we can be more concrete about it soon,” Danish Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen said. Ritzau news agency on Friday.
A coalition of 11 countries was to start training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets this month in Denmark. Denmark’s acting Defense Minister Troels Poulsen said in July that the country expected to see “results” from the training in early 2024.
NATO members Denmark and the Netherlands have led international efforts to train pilots and support personnel, maintain aircraft and ultimately allow Ukraine to obtain F-16s to use in its war with Russia.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in May that the Netherlands was seriously considering providing Ukraine with F-16s as it is currently phasing out fighter jets from its own military.
According to figures from the Dutch Ministry of Defense, the Netherlands currently has 24 operational F-16s that will be phased out by mid-2024. A further 18 of the aircraft are currently available for sale, of which 12 have been provisionally sold.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent letters to his Danish and Dutch counterparts assuring them that the applications would be approved, the US official said.
“I am writing to express America’s full support for both the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine and the training of Ukrainian pilots by qualified F-16 instructors,” Blinken said in a letter to the two officials. , a copy of which was seen by Reuters.
Blinken said: “It remains critical that Ukraine can defend itself against the ongoing Russian aggression and violation of its sovereignty.”
He said approval of the applications would allow Ukraine “to make the most of its new capabilities as soon as the first batch of pilots complete their training.”
US President Joe Biden endorsed training programs for Ukrainian F-16 pilots in May. In addition to the training in Denmark, a training center was to be established in Romania.
kyiv will not be able to operate US-made F-16 fighter jets this coming fall and winter, Ukrainian air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat told Ukrainian television late Wednesday.
US officials have privately said that the F-16s would have been of little help to Ukraine in its current counter-offensive and will not be a game changer when they finally arrive, given Russian air defense systems and the contested skies over Ukraine.
The F-16 is made by Lockheed Martin (LMT.N).
Reporting by Steve Holland; Additional reporting by Idrees Ali and Bart Meijer, Louise Rasmussen in Copenhagen; Edited by Cynthia Osterman and Toby Chopra
Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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