Zelensky obtains more than 60 F-16 aircraft from the Netherlands and Denmark to fight against Russia

According to the president, the Netherlands will commit 42 devices while Denmark will deliver 19, the first around New Year 2024

Both countries will replace the F-16 delivered by the brand new American model F-35

MADRID, 20 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, has left his lightning trips this Sunday to the Netherlands and Denmark with the promise of both countries to deliver more than 60 F-16 combat aircraft requested for months by Kiev to fight against Russia.

The Ukrainian president has confirmed that he will receive a total of 42 F-16 aircraft from the Netherlands, although the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, has been reluctant to give an exact number, and the Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, has announced that his country will allocate a total of 19 aircraft in three batches, the first, of six aircraft, to be delivered around the New Year of 2024.

The delivery depends on two crucial factors: the development of the training of Ukrainian pilots and technical equipment in Europe and the progressive replacement of the F-16 by new models of US-made F-35 fighter jets.

In the case of the Netherlands, the Ministry of Defense itself has recognized that the devices "are becoming redundant" since they will be replaced by this new model. Of the 42 F-16 available, the Royal Air Force still maintains 24 operational aircraft, generally used to monitor the Benelux airspace, which is why the Dutch government did not want to specify the figure that Zelenski did announce, although the authorities are thinking of a replacement of all units by the F-35.

Rutte also recalled that there are still certain fringes that, he hopes, "will be resolved soon": Ukraine must firmly promise that the planes will not be used to attack Russian territory -- knowing that Russia considers part of Ukraine to be legally integrated within its borders, in the case of Crimea -- and make significant infrastructure improvements to accommodate those planes.

Frederiksen has been more forceful in Zelenski's subsequent visit, where he has committed a total of 19 aircraft without hot pads and has even given deadlines: a first batch of six aircraft around New Year, followed by another eight more in 2024 and another five more in 2025.

These 19 aircraft make up more than half of the 30 F-16s that Denmark has available, although, as is already the case in the Netherlands, it is pending to replace 27 of them with the new American F-35s from Lockheed Martin Corp.

The devices, thus, will be delivered as the US meets the delivery deadlines for the F-35s and as the Ukrainian pilots and personnel (a total of 70 troops) currently deployed in Denmark complete their training.

These announcements take place three days after the approval granted by the United States to the transfer, as manufacturer of the replacement F-35s.

The Dutch Defense Minister, Wopke Hoekstra, confirmed and celebrated the US approval on social networks, since it is "an important milestone for Ukraine in the defense of its population and its country."

The Danish Foreign Minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, also thanked at the time the "friendly letter" sent by his American counterpart, Antony Blinken, which gives "certain options for action." Now, there are no obstacles to the shipment, but Rasmussen has indicated in statements to the DR chain that he will speak with the allies about steps to follow.

The F-16 fighters are one of the recurring requests of the Ukrainian president in view of a counter-offensive already underway to drive Russian forces out of occupied areas in eastern and southern Ukraine. However, it has been met with Western suspicion and a battery of delays.

kyiv already publicly assumes that it will not receive the fighters until at least next year. "It is obvious that we will not be able to defend Ukraine this fall and winter with F-16s," an Air Force spokesman, Yuri Ignat, said in an interview on Ukrainian television this week.

This past Saturday, however, the Ukrainian Defense Minister, Oleksi Reznikov, already considered the training program "started" in an interview on channel 24 of Ukrainian television in which he listed eleven countries participating in this initiative led by the Netherlands and Denmark.

According to Reznikov, the instructors will announce the completion of these exercises when they see how Ukrainian pilots, engineers and technicians perceive new skills and interact with each other, without elaborating.

Hours earlier, Zelenski had already announced that preparations for training with Gripen aircraft were about to begin, according to what he announced at a press conference with the Swedish Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, during his visit to the country.

Earlier this month, the US news portal Politico reported that the first group of Ukrainian pilots had already been identified: a total of eight English-speaking individuals who will receive combat training. Another 20 pilots could follow them while waiting to complete an English reinforcement course in the United Kingdom.