WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2023) A Pentagon spokesperson told Sputnik on Thursday that there is no update on whether European allies have submitted a plan to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.
"The US will support a joint effort to train Ukrainian pilots on fourth-generation fighter aircraft, including F-16s, as part of our long-term commitment to Ukraine's self-defense. We have no new announcements to make regarding this effort today," the spokesperson said, when asked whether European allies have submitted their training proposal to the United States.
On Tuesday, US media reported that the United States is still waiting for its European allies to finalize their plan for training Ukrainian pilots to use F-16 fighter jets, which Washington will have to approve before the program can begin.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Monday that Ukrainian pilots would begin training on US-made F-16 fighter jets in August.
In mid-July, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine would lead to a further escalation in the conflict because the aircraft have a modification that makes them nuclear-capable and represent a direct threat to Russia.
