Netherlands "seriously considering" sending F-16s to Ukraine

On Friday 26 May, Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, said his state has not yet decided to provide F-16 fighters to Ukraine, but is "seriously considering" such an option.

Source: This was reported by European Pravda with reference to Reuters 

Details: During a press conference, Rutte was asked if the Netherlands would send fighter jets to Ukraine, to which he responded that no final decision had been taken, but added that "if you start training [pilots – ed.] it's obvious that is something you are seriously considering".

According to the prime minister of the Netherlands, any decision on sending F-16s would need to be approved by the US first. He added that the Netherlands is currently phasing out its F-16s, meaning that the country would potentially have fighter jets to pass on.

Earlier, Bloomberg, citing sources, wrote that the Netherlands may send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine after the pilots have completed training.

According to figures from the Dutch defence ministry, the Netherlands currently has 24 operational F-16s which will be phased out by mid-2024. Another 18 of the jets are currently available for sale, of which 12 have been provisionally sold.

The day before, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin announced that Denmark and the Netherlands would lead a European coalition to conduct training for Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighters, and Norway, Belgium, Portugal and Poland also offered to contribute to the exercises.

Earlier, Austin expressed hope that the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets will begin in the coming weeks. Ukrainian pilots will be trained on F-16s at military bases in Europe, the Pentagon said.

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