The US has approved sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine from Denmark and the Netherlands to defend against Russian invaders as soon as pilot training is completed, a US official said on Thursday.
Ukraine has actively sought the US-made F-16 fighter jets to help it counter Russian air superiority.
Washington gave Denmark and the Netherlands official assurances that the US will expedite approval of transfer requests for 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 messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Now, we will further discuss the subject with our European partners.”
Denmark and the Netherlands had recently asked for those assurances. The US must approve the transfer of the military jets from its allies to Ukraine.
A coalition of 11 countries was due to start training Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16 fighter jets this month in Denmark. Denmark’s acting defence minister Troels Poulsen said in July that the country hoped to see “results” from the training in early 2024. Nato members Denmark and the Netherlands have been leading international efforts to train pilots as well as support staff, maintain aircraft and ultimately enable Ukraine to obtain F-16s for use in its war with Russia.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in May said the Netherlands was seriously considering providing Ukraine with F-16s, as it is currently phasing out the fighter jets from its own armed forces.
Drone hits Moscow
Moscow: A Ukrainian drone hit a building in central Moscow on Friday, disrupting air traffic after triggering a blast that was heard across the business district of the Russian capital, Russian officials said.
The Russian defence ministry and Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said there were no casualties after air defences destroyed a drone which then fell on a non-residential building of Moscow’s Expo Center complex in the early hours of Friday.
