Belgium to hand over 30 F-16 aircraft to Ukraine: first to arrive by the end of the year
28 May 2024 13:03
Belgian Foreign Minister Hajia Lahbib has said that her country is ready to provide Ukraine with 30 F-16 fighter jets by 2028. She said this on RTL, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
Hajia Lahbib noted that the first fighter jets should be delivered to Ukraine “by the end of the year”.
According to her, her country’s commitment will be formalised in a security guarantee agreement to be signed between Ukraine and Belgium on 28 May.
According to the newspaper, the Belgian Ministry of Defence will also transfer ammunition from its stockpiles to equip F-16s for Ukraine.
According to the Belgian foreign minister, this support for Kyiv is necessary to stop Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, who is determined to push back the borders of European countries and ensure the security of Belgium.
Belgium joined the “F-16 coalition” last year, along with the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway, to provide Kyiv with a series of fighter-bombers to counter the Russian offensive.
Initially, Belgium was only involved in training, technical and logistical support. But last autumn, the government promised to provide a certain number of aircraft as soon as the first F-35s were delivered.
It is worth noting that during an online briefing with foreign media while in Warsaw, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that the process of transferring F-16s to Ukraine is currently going according to plan and that the combat aircraft should arrive in Ukraine in the middle of this summer.
Ukrainian pilots have returned to Europe for further training after completing the F-16 exercise in the United States.
