Netherlands Complete Export Permit, Defense Minister Ollongren Says F-16 Fighter Jets Will Be Sent To Ukraine Soon

Illustration of the F-16 fighter jet. (Wikimedia Commons/Stafff. Cherie A. Thurlby)

JAKARTA - Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren announced on Monday that the Netherlands had completed export permits for the F-16 fighter jet fleet to be delivered to Ukraine.

"The first plane will be delivered soon," said Defense Minister Ollongren, quoted from The Kyiv Independent July 2.

The Netherlands has pledged to send 24 US-made fourth-generation fighter jets to Ukraine, along with Kyiv's efforts to strengthen its Air Force. Apart from the Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium and Norway have also pledged F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.

However, Defense Minister Ollongren did not disclose an exact date or other delivery details, citing "operational security". However, the announcement confirms that the export license for the aircraft has been issued.

Last month, Defense Minister Ollongren told media the Dutch F-16 would reach Ukraine this summer. The jets will arrive a year after Denmark and the Netherlands set up a "battle jet coalition" for Ukraine at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023.

In April, Defense Minister Ollongren said he hoped the promised shipments by Denmark, the Netherlands and the United States would begin in the next few months, quoted by Reuters.

Separately, Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot said in May, the Netherlands would not object if Ukraine used the Dutch-backed F-16 fighter jet to strike targets inside Russia as a means of self-defense.

"If you have the right to defend yourself, there is no limit to gun use. This is a general principle," he said at an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague in comments reported by RFE/RL.

Foreign Minister Bruins Slot's comments came a day after Denmark said Ukraine could use Denmark-backed F-16 jets to strike military targets on Russian territory, as this would "in accordance with war rules."