Official: Ukraine requested F-16 fighters from the Netherlands
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS — The head of the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands, Ms. Kaisa Olongren, said that Ukraine has sent an official request to the country for the delivery of F-16 fighter jets.
- UK admits the possibility of transferring fighters to Ukraine
- Paris: We can deliver Rafale to Ukraine, this is not a taboo
- MiG-29 can’t shoot anything down with its 40-year-old radar
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked for “wings for freedom”, notes NOS. Olongren said the request is understandable but not easy to implement. “We need to discuss the F-16 supply with the Americans and other allies. And we have to seriously think about the consequences, it cannot happen overnight. We have to be honest about it,” the minister emphasized.
Before the Ukrainian army can use combat aircraft, the military will have to undergo training, she said. The minister recalled that F-16s are part of the US defense system, so the US government must give permission for their delivery.
In the future, Ukraine may become one of the countries using the F-16, Olongren said. “Ukraine will never again be able to buy Russian fighter jets,” she concluded.
Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said earlier that the country’s authorities would consider supplying F-16 fighter jets if Kyiv requested them. He emphasized that the Netherlands is open and “there are no taboos”. At the same time, Germany and the United States have previously announced that they will not supply combat aircraft to Ukraine.
UK and France
BulgarianMilitary.com recalls that the British authorities are currently considering the possibility of supplying Ukraine with combat aircraft, including fighter jets. This was stated by the office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Mr. Rishi Sunak. The UK, in turn, can transfer a few old aircraft of its own production to Ukraine, and then the “extra” in the form of Poland and the Baltic countries will require Germany and other European countries to supply more aircraft to Ukraine.
On January 31 the French Defense Minister Mr. Sébastien Lecornu said at a joint press conference with Ukrainian Defense Minister Mr. Alexy Reznikov in Paris that there are no taboos on the delivery of fighter jets to Kyiv. “On this issue, we rely on three criteria,” Lecorneau said, adding that these criteria had already been expressed by French President Emmanuel Macron.
***
Follow us everywhere and at any time. BulgarianMilitary.com has responsive design and you can open the page from any computer, mobile devices or web browsers. For more up-to-date news, follow our Google News, YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook pages. Subscribe to our Newsletter and read our stories in News360App in AppStore or GooglePlay or in FeedlyApp in AppStore or GooglePlay. Our standards: Manifesto & ethical princliples.