MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st May, 2023) UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed on Sunday that the United Kingdom would start training Ukrainian pilots this summer as Ukraine's donors appear close to a consensus to equip it with Western fighter jets.
This past Monday, the UK government pledged to provide training to Ukrainian pilots starting this summer, as well as send air defense weapons and drones, as a "key part" of an international coalition on providing Ukraine with F16s � the fighter jet of its choice.
"We are supporting Ukraine to develop the air force it needs for the future, with the UK training Ukrainian pilots starting this summer," Sunak told a press conference on the sidelines of G7 summit in Japan, adding that "we've made a real breakthrough at this summit."
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, also attending the G7's summit in Hiroshima, vowed to continue training Ukrainian troops.
On Friday, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that US President Joe Biden had informed his G7 counterparts that the United States would support a joint effort to train Ukrainian pilots on fourth generation fighter aircraft, including F-16s. Sullivan added, however, that the right time to introduce F-16s to the fighting in Ukraine was "not right now."
US media have reported, citing officials, that Biden's administration has given its consent to its allies to deliver their US-made F-16s to Ukraine after almost a year of unwillingness to do so, which was presumably the result of pressure by Congress, the US' allies and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
An adviser to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, Yuri Sak, told the Washington Post on Saturday that Ukraine was hoping to receive the first F-16s in late September-early October.
