US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan held a press conference in Hiroshima, Japan, where he was on the margin of the G7 Leaders’ Summit.
Stating that US President Joe Biden has informed his G7 counterparts that he will support a joint effort to train Ukrainian pilots on fourth-generation fighter jets, including F16s, Sullivan noted that they have fulfilled their promises so far, providing Ukraine with the support they need.
US National Security Advisor: We discussed developing Ukrainian air force
“As training progresses in the coming months, we will work with our allies to determine when, by whom and how many planes will be delivered,” Sullivan said.
Pointing out that President Biden has not removed the F16 option from the table before, Sullivan said that the support given to Ukraine so far has been made according to the requirements of the conflicts.
Ukrainian pilots will be trained
Sullivan explained that with the support given, they have made the Ukrainians in a position to make progress on the battlefield through counterattacks, and that the fourth generation warplanes are a part of enabling Ukraine to be able to deter and defend against Russia in the future.
Noting that the Ukrainian pilots will be trained in the first stage, Sullivan stated that they will work with the allies and the Ukrainians to determine how the aircraft will be procured over time, and that these decisions are made with the advice of military commanders.
Sullivan stated that they currently think that the main need of Ukrainians is not F16, since they will need it in the future, the appropriate timing is to start training now.
The US does not support Ukraine’s attack on Russian territory
On the other hand, Sullivan reiterated that the US and other partners do not support Ukraine’s attack on Russian territory with F16s, and pointed out that the Ukrainians also stated that they were ready to comply with this warning.
Sullivan did not specify how long the training will take.
Zelensky goes to Japan
Regarding Biden’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who will go to Japan to attend the G7 summit, Sullivan said that they have not yet made an official statement on this matter, but that Biden is looking forward to meeting with Zelenskiy.
Sullivan did not respond to a question about how the Ukrainian leader arrived in Japan, but said the United States was not involved in the trip.
Biden’s approval to provide F-16 training to Ukrainian pilots
According to the American press, US officials, who announced that Biden said he would support the plan to provide F-16 training to Ukrainian pilots, stated that this was a step for the US to send F-16s to Ukraine.
Officials said that Biden said that decisions about when, how many and by whom these fighter jets will be made will be made in the coming months as the training continues. Authorities also announced that the training in question will be given in Europe and will begin in the coming weeks.
Thanks to Biden from Zelensky
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed the information in his Twitter post, “I welcome the historic decision of the United States and Mr. Biden to support the international fighter jet coalition. This decision will further strengthen our military in the sky. I believe we will discuss the implementation of this decision at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima.” said.
International coalition to supply fighter jets to Ukraine
Britain and the Netherlands announced on the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Iceland that they had agreed on an “international coalition” to supply fighter jets to Ukraine.
In addition, Britain and Germany announced that they will not deliver fighter jets to Kiev in the near future and that the final decision on a possible delivery of F16 fighter jets to Ukraine rests with the United States.