President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine has renewed his appeal for U.S.-built F-16 fighter jets to help protect the country from Russian aggression. Last week, U.S. President Joe Biden told G7 leaders that Washington supported joint allied training programmes for Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighters.
Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands have all offered support for the training programmes, while Britain, Belgium, Denmark, and France have all expressed openness to the idea of providing training. Poland and Slovakia have already donated 27 MiG-29s to supplement Ukraine’s fleet.
The transfer of F-16 jets to Ukraine would raise the question of NATO’s role in the conflict, and the U.S. has estimated that at least 18 months will be needed for training and delivery of the aircraft. France has offered to begin training Ukrainian pilots in France right away, while Britain has agreed to start training in the spring.
The idea of a “jets coalition” of Western backers to provide the aircraft and the training to combat Russian air attacks has been met with enthusiasm, and is seen as a sure signal from the world that Russia’s invasion will end in defeat.