Ukraine will get F-16 fighter jets from Dutch, Danes after US agrees

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The United States has given its approval for the Netherlands and Denmark to deliver F-16s to Ukraine, officials in Washington and Europe said Friday, in a major gain for Kyiv even though the fighter jets won’t have an impact any time soon on the almost 18-month war.

It was not immediately clear when the first F-16s might enter the conflict but Ukrainian pilots will first have to undertake at least six months’ training on the aircraft, according to officials.

Ukraine has long pleaded for the sophisticated fighter to give it a combat edge. It recently launched a long-anticipated counteroffensive against the Kremlin’s forces without air cover, placing its troops at the mercy of Russian aviation and artillery.

In eastern Ukraine, attack helicopter pilots welcomed the news. They said Russia has a clear advantage in the skies, but the introduction of modern fighter jets could dramatically shift the balance of power Kyiv’s way.

Ukrainian forces supporting infantry are using decades-old Soviet-era models, which are vulnerable to air-to-air missile attacks from Russian fighter jets, Capt. Yevgen Rakita, a spokesman for the 18th Army Aviation Brigade, told The Associated Press.

“A modern war cannot be won without aviation (capabilities),” Rakita said.

In making the decision on F-16 deliveries, Washington aims to ensure warplanes can be provided to Ukraine as soon as its pilots complete their training, according to a Biden administration official who was not authorized to comment and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The official said U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken sent a letter to his Dutch and Danish counterparts earlier this week, offering formal assurance that the U.S. would fast-track approval of all requests from third parties to transfer F-16s to Ukraine.

Danish Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen said Friday the training of Ukrainian pilots is starting this month.

A coalition of 11 Western countries — the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden and the United Kingdom — pledged in July to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s.

Officials have previously said that Ukrainian pilots will need six to eight months of training.

Denmark will hand over some of its F-16s only after receiving its new F-35 jet fighters. The first four F-35s are due to be delivered on Oct. 1.

Washington’s blessing for the plane donations to other countries is needed because the aircraft are made in the United States.

Ukraine’s Western allies have at times moved slowly on granting Kyiv the military support it has requested.

President Joe Biden’s authorization last May for allies to train Ukrainian forces on how to operate the warplanes, and eventually to provide the aircraft themselves, was preceded by months of debate in Washington and quiet talks with allies, officials said.

The administration had concerns that the move might escalate tensions with Russia. Also, U.S. officials argued that learning to fly and logistically support the advanced F-16 would be difficult. Eventually, the go-ahead came because the F-16s are required for Ukraine’s long-term security needs.

Though delivery is likely months away, Washington says the F-16s — like the advanced U.S. Abrams tanks — will be crucial in the long term as Kyiv faces down Russia.

Ukraine has been relying on older aircraft, such as Russian-made MiG29 and Sukhoi jets. F-16s have newer technology and targeting capabilities. They are also more versatile, experts say.

In other developments:

Russian air defenses stopped drone attacks on central Moscow and on the country’s ships in the Black Sea, officials said Friday, blaming the attempted strikes on Ukraine. It was not possible to verify the claims.

Also Friday, a Hong Kong-flagged cargo ship that this week set sail along a Black Sea temporary corridor established by Ukraine for merchant shipping safely reached the coast of Istanbul on Friday. The voyage was closely watchedto see whether the Russian navy would allow the Joseph Schulte container vessel to pass unmolested.

Kullab reported from eastern Ukraine and Olsen from Copenhagen. Aamer Madhani contributed from Washington and Jim Heintz from Tallinn, Estonia.

荷兰海牙——华盛顿和欧洲的官员周五表示，美国已批准荷兰和丹麦向乌克兰交付F-16战斗机，这对基辅来说是一项重大胜利，尽管这些战斗机短期内不会对这场持续近18个月的战争产生任何影响。

目前尚不清楚首批 F-16 战机何时会投入战斗，但据官员称，乌克兰飞行员首先必须接受至少六个月的战机训练。

乌克兰长期以来一直恳求获得这种先进的战斗机，以增强其作战优势。最近，乌克兰发动了期待已久的反攻，目标是克里姆林宫的军队，但由于缺乏空中掩护，乌克兰军队完全暴露在俄罗斯空军和炮兵的火力之下。

在乌克兰东部，武装直升机飞行员对这一消息表示欢迎。他们说，俄罗斯在制空权方面拥有明显优势，但现代化战斗机的引入可能会极大地改变力量平衡，使基辅一方占据优势。

乌克兰陆军第18航空旅发言人叶夫根·拉基塔上尉告诉美联社，支援步兵作战的乌克兰部队使用的是几十年前的苏联时代型号，这些型号很容易受到俄罗斯战斗机的空对空导弹攻击。

拉基塔说：“没有航空（能力），现代战争就无法取胜。”

据一位未获授权发表评论的拜登政府官员透露，华盛顿在决定向乌克兰交付F-16战机时，旨在确保一旦乌克兰飞行员完成训练，就能立即向其提供战机。这位官员在匿名的情况下接受了美联社的采访。

这位官员表示，美国国务卿安东尼·布林肯本周早些时候致信荷兰和丹麦外长，正式保证美国将加快批准所有第三方向乌克兰转让F-16战斗机的请求。

丹麦国防大臣雅各布·埃勒曼-延森周五表示，对乌克兰飞行员的训练将于本月开始。

由 11 个西方国家组成的联盟——荷兰、比利时、加拿大、丹麦、卢森堡、挪威、波兰、葡萄牙、罗马尼亚、瑞典和英国——于 7 月承诺训练乌克兰飞行员驾驶 F-16 战斗机。

官员们此前曾表示，乌克兰飞行员需要六到八个月的培训。

丹麦将在接收新型F-35战斗机后才会移交部分F-16战斗机。首批四架F-35战斗机将于10月1日交付。

向其他国家捐赠飞机需要得到华盛顿的批准，因为这些飞机是在美国制造的。

乌克兰的西方盟友有时在向基辅提供其所要求的军事支持方面行动迟缓。

官员们表示，乔·拜登总统去年五月授权盟友训练乌克兰军队如何操作战机，并最终向乌克兰提供战机，此前华盛顿进行了数月的辩论，并与盟友进行了秘密会谈。

美国政府担心此举可能会加剧与俄罗斯的紧张关系。此外，美国官员认为，学习驾驶和提供后勤保障先进的F-16战机将十分困难。最终，由于F-16战机对乌克兰的长期安全需求至关重要，采购计划还是获得了批准。

尽管交付可能还需要几个月的时间，但华盛顿方面表示，F-16 战机——就像先进的美国艾布拉姆斯坦克一样——在基辅与俄罗斯对抗的过程中，从长远来看将至关重要。

乌克兰一直以来都依赖老旧的战机，例如俄罗斯制造的米格-29和苏霍伊战机。专家表示，F-16战机拥有更新的技术和目标定位能力，而且用途更加广泛。

其他进展：

俄罗斯官员周五表示，俄罗斯防空部队阻止了针对莫斯科市中心和黑海境内俄罗斯船只的无人机袭击，并指责乌克兰发动了这些袭击。目前尚无法核实这些说法。

同样在周五，一艘悬挂香港国旗的货船本周沿着乌克兰为商船航行而设立的黑海临时通道起航，并于周五安全抵达伊斯坦布尔海岸。此次航行备受关注，人们都在密切关注俄罗斯海军是否会允许这艘名为“约瑟夫·舒尔特”号的集装箱船顺利通过。

库拉布从乌克兰东部报道，奥尔森从哥本哈根报道。阿默·马德哈尼从华盛顿报道，吉姆·海因茨从爱沙尼亚塔林报道。