Victorious news of 789th day of war: Denmark to send F-16 to Ukraine in summer, Ukrainian forces destroy over 600 drones

Ukrainian troops destroy 7 tanks and over 600 drones

The Ukrainian Defense Forces are inflicting losses in manpower and equipment on Russia. Over the past day, the Russian army lost 591 soldiers, 7 tanks, 7 armored combat vehicles, and 623 drones in the eastern sector. This was reported by the Khortytsia operational and strategic group of troops on Telegram.

In this sector, Russia's losses amounted to 591 soldiers, 7 tanks, 7 armored combat vehicles, 9 cannons and mortars, 7 anti-tank weapons, 1 air defense system, 19 vehicles, 4 electronic warfare systems, 623 UAVs, and 1 UAV control center. 

Ukrainian troops also managed to destroy 36 shelters and 3 ammunition depots.

F-16s from Denmark will be in Ukraine this summer

Ambassador of Denmark to Ukraine Ole Egberg Mikkelsen says that Denmark will send Ukraine the promised F-16 fighter jets in the summer of 2024.

Mikkelsen assured that there was no need for concern, stating that aircraft would indeed be made available for Ukraine. He mentioned that their entire F-16 fleet was presently undergoing decommissioning as they shifted towards a new generation of F-35 aircraft.

According to him, some of the fighter jets will also be delivered to Argentina. When asked by a journalist when Ukraine would receive the F-16s, the ambassador quoted Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen as saying that Denmark would provide the fighter jets to Ukraine this summer.

"There is nothing to worry about. The F-16s will be delivered as promised," the ambassador added.

Sweden considers sending Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine

Defense Minister Pål Jonson says that Sweden has four Patriot systems, but they can neither promise nor rule out the possibility of providing them to Ukraine.

The minister emphasized that Ukraine is currently in an extremely difficult situation, so it is important that Sweden contributes to the country's defense. According to Pål Jonson, the top item on Ukraine's list of needs is air defense systems, and Ukraine may receive six more Patriot air defense systems from its North Atlantic Alliance partners and one more from Germany.

He noted that Sweden has four such systems, but he could neither promise nor rule out that something could be saved for Ukraine's air defense.

"We are at the stage of creating our own air defense system. Many countries use Patriot, and the US has significant resources in this area. It is possible that we can make a contribution, but we need to see how best to do it," he said.

Norway and Latvia will contribute to boosting Ukraine's air defense

The Latvian government has announced its readiness to provide Ukraine with short-range air defense systems. A statement by Latvian Defense Minister Andris Sprūds was published on the website of the European Commission.

"But it's not just about Patriot systems. They are, of course, very important, as our Ukrainian partners have also emphasized. But if we're talking about air defense, we're talking about a fairly wide range of different air defense systems," Sprūds explained.

The minister also emphasized that Latvia is ready to contribute to Ukraine's air defense.

At the same time, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, during a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, announced that Norway would join the IAAD initiative to provide Ukraine with air defense systems.

"We have very little time to delay, so Norway will be involved in the financing. Several other countries are contributing to this, because there are air defense equipment that can be delivered to Ukraine quite quickly, and we have been working intensively on this in recent days and weeks," he said.

Since it takes time to produce air defense equipment, the Norwegian prime minister emphasized that it would have to send air defense from its own stocks.