EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell noted the decision of the "Big Seven" (G7) to train Ukrainian pilots on American F-16 fighter jets and said that their training has already begun.
He said this before the meeting of the Council of Heads of Foreign Affairs of the EU countries.
According to him, the G7 summit gave a positive result and prepared the ground for arming Ukraine with jet fighters. And the first step to this is the training of Ukrainian pilots.
Josep Borrell hopes that the Ukrainian Defense Forces will soon receive F-16s.
- F-16 fighters will be delivered to Ukraine in units, not individually. At the initial stage, several dozen of these aircraft may be transferred. Earlier, the adviser to the Ukrainian Minister of Defense Yurii Sak said that Ukraine wants to receive 40 to 50 F-16 fighters to form three or four squadrons.
- On May 16, Britain announced the start of an international coalition of countries that will train Ukrainian pilots on fourth-generation Western fighters, including the F-16. The coalition included the USA, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Portugal. Pilot training will begin in the coming months.
- On May 20, the White House confirmed that in the following months, the United States and its allies will discuss when and how many fighter jets Ukraine will receive. The US agreed to the transfer of F-16s to Ukraine.
- On May 21, the US President Joe Biden confirmed that the United States will begin training Ukrainian pilots in the near future. The American report says that two Ukrainian aces on F-16 simulators exceeded the expectations of the United States. There, they believe that they will be able to train Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16 in 4 months, instead of 18, as previously planned.