United to win: Netherlands approves use of F-16 fighters given to Ukraine on Russian soil
Photo: Ruslan Kaniuka
The Netherlands has declared that Ukraine's use of the F-16 fighter jets they transferred is unrestricted, including in Russian airspace. Ukraine has complete discretion over the resources the Netherlands provides "at will, subject to compliance with the humanitarian law of war."
According to NOS, the Commander of the Netherlands Armed Forces, Onno Eichelsheim, stated this.
"We have not imposed any restrictions on the use and range of the F-16 as long as the laws of war are respected," Eichelsheim said.
He also called the Ukrainian invasion of the territory of the Russian Federation "brilliant from a practical point of view."
"They (Ukrainian troops – ed.) quickly captured a large territory, using new methods. Thus, they created a dilemma for Putin," the commander of the Dutch armed forces believes.
Eichelsheim also does not see a problem in the fact that the weapons of his state will be used in such offensive actions of Ukraine:
"Ukraine can use the resources we provide as it wishes, subject to compliance with the humanitarian law of war."
It should be noted that the Netherlands has allocated 24 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, but the armed forces commander did not say how many aircraft have already been deployed in the country.
By the way, the Pentagon recently announced that the US does not plan to transfer its own F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine shortly. They indicated that European NATO allies meet the need for these aircraft.
As reported, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the receipt of the first F-16 fighters at the beginning of August.
The exact number of planes Ukraine received is still unknown, but according to Bloomberg, it recently obtained six planes from the Netherlands.
Additionally, The Economist reported that the first batch of 10 F–16 fighters has already been delivered to Ukraine.
For reference:
Overall, the Netherlands will be sending 24 F–16 fighter jets to Ukraine. Amsterdam also confirmed that it will provide an extra 300 million euros to cover the cost of ammunition for these F–16s, which will be delivered to Ukraine in the coming months.
In addition, ten Ukrainian soldiers received training in the Netherlands for maintaining F–16 fighter jets.
In July, the Netherlands announced its pledge to contribute 20 million euros to a collective fund for drone cooperation. This funding will secure the provision of 1 million FPV drones.
Furthermore, the Netherlands and Denmark will deliver 14 Leopard 2A4 tanks to Ukraine at the end of this summer. These tanks were purchased last year.
