Ukraine has received its first batch of US-made F-16 jets, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday, quickly adding that more are needed to beat back Russian forces.
For more than two years, Ukraine has pleaded with its Western partners for the aircraft — long considered the crown jewel in the sprawling list of military hardware Kyiv has sought.
“We often heard the word ‘impossible.’ Now it is a reality. Reality in our skies. F-16s in Ukraine. We made it happen,” Zelenskiy said, as some flew above him during the announcement.
Photo: AFP
Zelenskiy was standing in front of what looked like two gray, partially-covered F-16s branded with the Ukrainian trident, in a location reporters were asked not to disclose for security reasons.
“I am proud of all our guys who are mastering these aircraft and have already started using them for our country,” he said.
He did not say how many jets had been delivered and declined to comment on their specific tasks, but journalists saw at least two F-16s.
The announcement was welcomed by many as Kyiv’s forces are struggling to hold back advances by Russian troops.
“This is the combat aircraft we have been waiting for, which can significantly enhance our capabilities,” Ukrainian parliament chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk said.
Kyiv hopes the arrival of the fighter jets — touted for their precision, speed and range — would enable it to better protect itself from Russian bombardment.
They could begin to provide an offensive air capability to Ukraine, a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies said.
Their decisiveness would depend on a number of factors, including the types of weapons provided with the planes and proficiency levels of pilots, the report said.
Zelenskiy immediately warned more were needed.
“Our partners know that the number of F-16s we have in Ukraine, the number of pilots who have already been trained, is not enough,” he said. “The good news is that we are expecting additional F-16s.”
Several NATO members have pledged to supply varying numbers of the fighter jets, and have been training Ukrainian pilots and crews for months.
“Our guys are training a lot,” Zelenskiy said, thanking Denmark, the Netherlands, the US and other allies.
Amid a Russian air campaign, Kyiv has placed Ukraine’s need for improved air defenses at the top of the agenda in meetings with allies.
“I am grateful to our allies for this decision. First and foremost, the effective use of modern aircraft means saving the lives of Ukrainian servicemen,” Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander Oleksandr Syrsky said.
DOUBLE-MURDER CASE: The officer told the dispatcher he would check the locations of the callers, but instead headed to a pizzeria, remaining there for about an hour A New Jersey officer has been charged with misconduct after prosecutors said he did not quickly respond to and properly investigate reports of a shooting that turned out to be a double murder, instead allegedly stopping at an ATM and pizzeria. Franklin Township Police Sergeant Kevin Bollaro was the on-duty officer on the evening of Aug. 1, when police received 911 calls reporting gunshots and screaming in Pittstown, about 96km from Manhattan in central New Jersey, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renee Robeson’s office said. However, rather than responding immediately, prosecutors said GPS data and surveillance video showed Bollaro drove about 3km
Tens of thousands of people on Saturday took to the streets of Spain’s eastern city of Valencia to mark the first anniversary of floods that killed 229 people and to denounce the handling of the disaster. Demonstrators, many carrying photos of the victims, called on regional government head Carlos Mazon to resign over what they said was the slow response to one of Europe’s deadliest natural disasters in decades. “People are still really angry,” said Rosa Cerros, a 42-year-old government worker who took part with her husband and two young daughters. “Why weren’t people evacuated? Its incomprehensible,” she said. Mazon’s
‘MOTHER’ OF THAILAND: In her glamorous heyday in the 1960s, former Thai queen Sirikit mingled with US presidents and superstars such as Elvis Presley The year-long funeral ceremony of former Thai queen Sirikit started yesterday, with grieving royalists set to salute the procession bringing her body to lie in state at Bangkok’s Grand Palace. Members of the royal family are venerated in Thailand, treated by many as semi-divine figures, and lavished with glowing media coverage and gold-adorned portraits hanging in public spaces and private homes nationwide. Sirikit, the mother of Thai King Vajiralongkorn and widow of the nation’s longest-reigning monarch, died late on Friday at the age of 93. Black-and-white tributes to the royal matriarch are being beamed onto towering digital advertizing billboards, on
POWER ABUSE WORRY: Some people warned that the broad language of the treaty could lead to overreach by authorities and enable the repression of government critics Countries signed their first UN treaty targeting cybercrime in Hanoi yesterday, despite opposition from an unlikely band of tech companies and rights groups warning of expanded state surveillance. The new global legal framework aims to bolster international cooperation to fight digital crimes, from child pornography to transnational cyberscams and money laundering. More than 60 countries signed the declaration, which means it would go into force once ratified by those states. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the signing as an “important milestone,” and that it was “only the beginning.” “Every day, sophisticated scams destroy families, steal migrants and drain billions of dollars from our economy...
RSS