The United States and Europe are working to ensure that Ukrainian pilots start training on F-16 fighter jets “as soon as possible,” said John Kirby, the US National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications. At the same time, he added that he had no new information related to the Ukrainian pilot’s training.
“Obviously, coming out of Vilnius (NATO summit) and the G7, the President (Joe Biden) made a strong commitment that we do support F-16 – eventual F-16 delivery to Ukraine. And you got to start with training, and we have been working with our European allies, in particular, to see if we can get that training going as soon as possible.”
“But that’s still a focus. I don’t have an update for you on when it’s going to start or where, but we are actively working with our European allies and friends to see if we can get that training started as soon as we can,” he said.
Earlier, Kirby said Ukrainian pilots could start F-16 training in the US. In mid-July, 11 partner countries signed a memorandum with Ukraine that defined the terms of F-16 training.
The training is scheduled for August, but according to media reports, the US has not yet approved the final training plan, as European states have not agreed on all its details, as per Ukrainska Pravda.
