Netherlands to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets in 2024 - Ambassador Karasevych

Ambassador of Ukraine to the Netherlands Oleksandr Karasevych said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

"In fact, Mrs. Ollongren (Dutch Defense Minister - ed.) recently said that Ukraine will receive F-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands this year. We know when exactly the Dutch fighter jets will be ready for delivery to Ukraine, but, of course, we will not disclose this," he said.

However, the number of fighter jets to be provided by the Netherlands is known. These are the 18 previously promised F-16s that are being prepared for delivery to Ukraine, as well as 6 more recently announced.

"But we have to understand that, in addition to the fighter jets that the Netherlands are giving to Ukraine, another 18 aircraft are being transferred by the Dutch partners to a training center in Romania to train Ukrainian pilots. And out of these 18 fighter jets, 5 are already in Romania. So, in total, we are talking about 42 F-16s that the Netherlands are providing to bring Ukraine's victory closer," Karasevych said.

He also added that the country will allocate €122 million for ammunition, weapons and cybersecurity for Ukraine.

"That is, out of €122 million you asked about, a certain part is transferred to Ukraine to strengthen our IT capabilities. Another part of the funds will be used to purchase artillery shells, which is something we really need now. We are talking about signing contracts for the purchase of shells. But we have to understand that these €122 million are a small part of the total funding provided for military aid this year. And if we are talking about the total amount of security assistance that the Netherlands is allocating to Ukraine this year, it is €2 billion," the ambassador said.

• President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday, December 22, that the Netherlands had begun preparations to transfer F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
• The Netherlands is to send 6 extra F-16 aircraft for Ukraine, bringing the total number of these jets the country is preparing for delivery to 24.