US denies delaying permission for Ukrainian pilots to train on F-16s

The White House says the US will allow European countries to start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.

Source: Jake Sullivan, US National Security Advisor, stated this in an interview with CNN, European Pravda reports

Details: Asked whether the United States would approve a permit for Ukrainians to train on Western fighter jets, Sullivan answered in the affirmative.

"The president has given a green light and we will allow, permit, support, facilitate and in fact provide the necessary tools for Ukrainians to begin being trained on F-16s, as soon as the Europeans are prepared," he said.

The adviser to Biden noted that European countries have said they need a few weeks to prepare training capabilities and that the United States will meet any deadlines they set.

"The United States will not be the hold-up in ensuring that this F-16 training can get underway," Sullivan added.

Earlier, Politico reported that a coalition of European countries, which this week promised to start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighters, is still waiting for the US to officially approve the programme.

This week, Ukraine signed a memorandum with its 11 partner states at the NATO Summit in Vilnius. The memorandum defines the conditions of training of Ukrainian pilots on the F-16 fighter jets.

In addition, on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Dutch Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren said that her government currently only has permission to train Ukrainian pilots, and has not yet agreed to transfer the aircraft.

The Pentagon has stated that the conditions on the battlefield are not ideal for the transfer of F-16s to Ukraine.

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