Ukrainian Pilots Need at Least 6 Months to Master Western Fighter Jets - Prime Minister

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th January, 2023) Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Monday that Kiev expected to receive fighter jets from the West in the near future and it would take Ukrainian pilots at least six months to learn how to operate them.

In this regard, training of Ukrainian pilots should be started immediately or as soon as possible, Shmyhal told the Politico newspaper.

Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Western allies for their decisions on the delivery of battle tanks to Ukraine and called on NATO countries to unlock the supply of long-range missiles and military aircraft to Kiev.

On Friday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that the delivery of fighter jets to Kiev was "out of the question." Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Berlin would never supply combat aircraft or send soldiers to Ukraine.

Russia started a military operation in Ukraine in February, 2022. In April, Moscow sent a note to NATO member states condemning their military assistance to Kiev amid the conflict. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that providing Ukraine with weapons did not contribute to the success of peace negotiations.