In a significant development, the United States and its allies are planning to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets to bolster the country’s security, according to a senior Biden administration official. While it is yet to be determined when Ukraine will receive the fighter jets and which countries will provide them, the official clarified that the planes would not be utilized for Ukraine’s upcoming counteroffensive against Russia. Instead, in the coming months, decisions will be made regarding the timing, quantity, and source of the F-16s to be supplied to Ukraine.
The provision of F-16s to Ukraine demonstrates “the long-term commitment of the United States and its allies to Ukraine’s self-defence”, as stated by a senior administration official. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has consistently urged the U.S. to provide F-16s, although President Joe Biden had previously declined these requests. In a February interview with ABC News, President Biden explained that based on U.S. military advice, “there was no immediate need for F-16s in Ukraine.”
However, France and Poland have previously expressed their openness to supplying Ukraine with advanced fighter jets. It should be noted that any transfer of American-made planes requires permission from the U.S. government.
The decision to provide F-16s to Ukraine coincides with President Biden’s attendance at the Group of Seven (G-7) summit in Japan. During the summit, President Biden informed other G-7 leaders that the U.S. would support efforts to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16s.
The joint training program for Ukrainian pilots on the F-16s is expected to commence in the coming weeks. The training will take place outside of Ukraine, at various locations in Europe, and is anticipated to take several months to complete.
Colin Kahl, the Pentagon’s top policy official, previously informed Congress that training Ukrainian pilots on F-16s could take around 18 months.
However, other U.S. defence officials have suggested that the training period could potentially be shortened to six to nine months, depending on the pilots’ prior training and familiarity with fighter aircraft.
Revitalizing Ukraine’s military with F-16 jets could come with a substantial cost, with estimates reaching up to $11 billion, as stated by Kahl during his appearance before the House Armed Services Committee. The financial responsibility for providing Ukraine with the F-16s has yet to be determined by G-7 leaders.
In March US media organisation NBC reported that two Ukrainian pilots were undergoing assessments in the U.S. to determine the duration of their training for flying attack aircraft, including F-16s. The United States had also approved the assessment of up to 10 additional Ukrainian pilots in the U.S.
As Ukraine’s regime is pulling Europe ever closer to direct confrontation with Russia, the provision of F-16 fighter jets from NATO countries is a significant sign that the elites behind this war-mongering show no signs of compassion for the people their conflict is affecting, as long as the money keeps flowing into their pockets.
