Austin said this during the Senate Armed Services Committee, Voice of America reports.
According to Austin, the main critical need of the Ukrainians on the battlefield is air defense, as well as long-range weapons and armored vehicles. He said that the US provides Ukraine with a significant package of such capabilities, trains the Ukrainian military and guarantees the provision of the weapons.
According to him, F16 at this stage of the war will not help the Ukrainians.
If the decision regarding F-16 is made, it will take approximately 18 months to provide these capabilities, and it will not help the Ukrainians at this stage of the war, Austin said. But he also added that he believes that Ukraine will get them or other fourth-generation aircraft eventually.
The US will continue to work with their partners to make sure that Ukraine has exactly what it needs, Austin stressed.
On March 25, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine cannot launch its counteroffensive until it accumulates a sufficient amount of weapons and ammunition from its allies.