According to Stern magazine, there is currently no alternative to the supply of such fighters to UkraineBERLIN, May 21.
/tass/. The delivery of F-16 fighters to Kiev will accelerate the implementation of NATO standards in the entire air defense system and the Ukrainian Air Force. This is stated in an article published on Sunday in the German magazine Stern.
The article notes that currently there is no alternative to the supply of F-16 fighters to Ukraine. If, as the author of the article claims, the West has decided to start training Ukrainian pilots, including on F-16 fighters, then combat aircraft will be delivered to Kiev. At the same time, as indicated in the material, "with the help of the F-16, the entire air defense and Air Force of Ukraine will be gradually modernized in accordance with the standards of the West and NATO." In the field of air defense, the process is in full swing, now planes will follow, the article notes.
The F-16 is initially capable of interacting with an air defense system that meets NATO standards. Given the situation in Ukraine, as the publication clarifies, this is absolutely necessary, because Patriot missile defense systems are not designed to shoot down their own planes. In addition, with the F-16 and the corresponding long-range weapons, according to the magazine, Kiev can attack the logistics routes of the Russian Federation, such as the Crimean Bridge, and try to disable command bunkers and air defense and electronic warfare.
In conclusion, the article emphasizes that the West will have to constantly update the types of weapons supplied to Kiev.
Earlier, American President Joe Biden, on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, told Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky that the United States, together with its allies, would begin training Ukrainian pilots, including on F-16 fighters. Prior to that, the assistant to the US President for National Security, Jake Sullivan, said that the United States would discuss with its allies in the coming months which countries would supply F-16 fighters to Ukraine. Sullivan added that, according to the American administration, F-16s are not included in the list of priority supplies for the preparation of Kiev by the West for a counteroffensive.
CNN, citing sources, noted that the Biden administration intends to allow the allies to transfer F-16 fighter jets to Kiev. According to them, the White House is signaling to European allies that it is not going to block the supply of F-16s, as it is constantly under pressure from Congress and other countries. At the same time, the staff of the American administration does not know anything about official requests for the export of aircraft, and State Department officials have not yet received orders on the preparation of documents for their transfer.