Netherlands And Denmark Affirm Commitment To Sending F-16 Fighter Jets To Ukraine, President Zelensky: Strengthen Defense And Attack

JAKARTA - The Netherlands and Denmark reaffirmed their commitment to sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, said PM Mark Rutte, while President Volodymyr Zelensky said the aid was very supportive of his country's defense and retaliatory attacks.

PM Rutte said the Netherlands had 42 F-16 aircraft, but it was too early to say whether all of the aircraft would be donated.

"Today we can announce that the Netherlands and Denmark are committed to transferring F-16 aircraft to Ukraine and the Ukrainian Air Force, in collaboration with the US and other allies," he said at a joint news conference with President Zelensky at the Eindhoven military air base, the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, President Zelensky, who called the deal a groundbreaking agreement, said the exact number of aircraft would be discussed later.

This promise is the first real promise of the F-16 for the Ukrainian armed forces, taking place days after the United States approved a possible delivery of fighter jets by the Netherlands and Denmark.

President Zelensky arrived in the Netherlands on Sunday and is expected to continue his journey to Denmark the following day.

Separately, Denmark's Foreign Ministry also confirmed its commitment to sending the F-16 in a statement on Sunday.

President Zelensky said the planes would help strengthen Ukraine's air defenses and help its counterattacks.

"The plane can speed up this process," he said.

"We are talking about air defenses, because we will face winter and we understand more than anyone in the world about how the electricityless winter will be," he explained.

It is known that the Netherlands and Denmark have led months of efforts to train Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16, and ultimately sent the fighter jets to help fight Russian air superiorities, whose forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

However, PM Rutte said the F-16 fighter jets would not be delivered immediately, as it would take time to properly train Ukrainian pilots and to prepare the infrastructure needed for aircraft use.

"Military training will begin in the near future, and of course it will take time to operate the aircraft with trained pilots, but we will do everything we can to make it happen as soon as possible," said PM Rutte.

Separately, Ukrainian Defense Minister Olexy Reznikov on Saturday, training has started for Ukrainian pilots, but will take at least six months and may take longer to train engineers and mechanics.

Training will take place in Denmark and Romania, officials from the 11-nation coalition said.

It is known that the Netherlands and Denmark have a donated F-16, along with the process of transitioning the iron birds of the armed forces of the two countries to the newer F-35 fighter aircraft.