Kyiv: The Netherlands may become the first country to deliver F-16 fighter jets to Kiev, Yuriy Sak, an adviser to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, said.
“The Netherlands are in a position to be [the] first [country delivering fighters],” he was quoted by Politico as saying.
On Monday, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said countries should not make individual decisions about supplying fighter jets and that the issue must be negotiated within a larger coalition.
Sak told the Washington Post on Saturday that Kiev hopes to receive the first F-16s from foreign donors in late September or early October. In his previous interview with Politico, he said Ukraine hoped to receive up to 50 jet fighters from its allies.
NATO allies recently pledged to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, the latest addition to the list of lethal weapons the West has provided to Ukraine as it gears up for a large-scale offensive against Russian forces.
