F-16 fighter jets

US and allies announce F-16 fighter jets are heading to Ukraine

From CNN’s Jennifer Hansler and Betsy Klein

F-16 fighter jets have begun heading to Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Wednesday.

 “I’m also pleased to announce that as we speak, the transfer of F-16 jets is underway, coming from Denmark, coming from the Netherlands. And those jets, those jets will be flying in the skies of Ukraine this summer to make sure that Ukraine can continue to effectively defend itself against the Russian aggression,” Blinken said at the NATO Public Forum in Washington, DC.

A joint statement from US President Joe Biden, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen confirmed the news. 

 “The Danish and Dutch governments are in the process of donating American-made F-16s to Ukraine, with the support of the United States. The transfer process for these F-16s is now underway, and Ukraine will be flying operational F-16s this summer. We are unable to provide additional details at this time due to operational security concerns,” the joint statement said.

Additional aircraft will be coming from Belgium and Norway, they added.

The Ukrainian government has long asked for F-16 fighter jets to help in its fight against Russia. The first group of Ukrainian pilots trained on the fighter jets graduated earlier this year.

Last year, the US gave the green light to European countries to train Ukrainians on the jets. 

The announcement follows an announcement from Biden on Tuesday night about a new package of air defenses for Ukraine, including Patriot batteries.