According to the President of Ukraine, it is important for Kiev that the United States play the main role in providing combat aircraft, since F-16s are American fighters.
CHISINAU, June 1. /tass/. A large number of Ukraine's allied countries are ready to hand over their fighters to Kiev. This was announced on Thursday by the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky.
"Today I heard strong support - a large number of states and, importantly, a large number of fighter planes, which, I am sure, in the near future, under the leadership of the United States, we will unite and make this coalition," he said at a press conference on the sidelines of the summit of the European Political Community in Moldova.
According to Zelensky, it is important for Kiev that the United States play the main role in providing combat aircraft, since F-16s are American fighters.
Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin said earlier that Denmark and the Netherlands will lead a European coalition to train Ukrainian pilots to use F-16 fighters. On May 21, US President Joe Biden announced at a press conference following the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima that the West would begin training Ukrainian pilots in the skills of controlling fourth-generation fighters, including the F-16. At the same time, the US President's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said that Washington will discuss with like-minded people in the coming months which states will transfer F-16 aircraft to Kiev.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko, commenting on the intentions of US allies to transfer the F-16 to Kiev, stressed that Western countries continue to follow the path of escalation in the Ukrainian conflict and Moscow will take this into account in its plans.
