First US-made F-16s arrive in Ukraine – Bloomberg
The number of warplanes is “small,” the news outlet has reported, citing unnamed sources | The first batch of US-made F-16 fighter jets has arrived in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday. The number of warplanes is “small,” sources told the outlet on condition of anonymity. Kiev has yet to comment on the development. ● The origin of the aircraft is not yet clear. Last year, a group of NATO states, including Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, and Sweden, formed the so-called ‘F-16 coalition’. It was later joined by Greece, the US, Bulgaria, and France. ● Some of the ‘coalition’ members, including the Netherlands and Denmark, pledged to provide Kiev with the Western aircraft from their own stocks, while others trained Ukrainian pilots. [...] Moscow has repeatedly stated that F-16s will not change the outcome of the conflict, just like the other Western weapons provided to Kiev. The Russian military will destroy the planes as it has done with other Ukrainian hardware, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier this year.
■ F-16 Fighter Jets "DELIVERED" to Ukraine (Harold Turner)