Norway will soon transfer six F-16s to Ukraine - MoD
Illustrative photo: Ukraine will receive F-16s from Norway (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine will receive F-16 fighter jets from Norway. Six aircraft will be delivered in the near future, according to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov on Facebook.
Umerov shared that during a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council, he held talks with Norwegian Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram. The Ukrainian official thanked the Norwegian government and people for their unprecedented support of Ukraine.
During the talks, the ministers discussed the current situation on the front line and Ukraine's needs, particularly in the area of long-range weapons. They also reached specific agreements on strengthening Ukraine's air defense.
"A separate focus was on the aviation component, specifically enhancing our capabilities with F-16 fighters. Norway will continue its support and will provide Ukraine with six aircraft in the near future," Umerov noted.
Additionally, according to the head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, he discussed with his Norwegian counterpart the development of Ukraine's defense industry. Umerov invited Norway to join in directly financing Ukrainian defense enterprises, as Denmark has already done.
Furthermore, the Ukrainian defense minister proposed to Norway the training and equipping of one Ukrainian brigade, an initiative currently being carried out by France.
Norway announced its intention to transfer six F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine in July. At that time, the country's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre assured that the deliveries would begin this year.
F-16 for Ukraine
Ukraine received its first F-16 fighter jets from Western allies back in late July. Initially, this was reported by Western media, but a few days later, the information was confirmed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The exact number of fighter jets already delivered to Ukrainian defenders is currently unknown. However, it was reported that the planes have already been involved in protecting Ukraine’s airspace during massive Russian attacks. One of the jets crashed during such an assault.
According to WSJ, Ukraine will not be able to receive a full squadron of F-16s (20 aircraft and 40 pilots) by the end of the year. This may only happen next year.
