OSLO (Dispatches) - Norway will donate U.S.-made F-16 combat aircraft to Ukraine, the Norwegian prime minister announced during a visit to Kyiv on Thursday, joining an effort led by the Netherlands and Denmark.
F-16s have been on Ukraine’s wish list for a long time because of their destructive power and global availability. The fighter jet is equipped with a 20mm cannon and can carry bombs, rockets and missiles.
“We are planning to donate Norwegian F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, and will provide further details about the donation, numbers and time frame for delivery, in due course,” Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement.
Stoere met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv earlier on Thursday and announced donations of anti-aircraft missiles and other equipment.
“The donation of these F-16 jets will significantly strengthen Ukraine’s military capabilities,” Norway’s Defense Minister Bjoern Arild Gram said in the statement.
The U.S. Defense Department will begin training Ukrainians to fly and maintain F-16 fighter jets in the coming months, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said.
The training is expected to begin in October at the Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Arizona, and will be facilitated by the Air National Guard’s 162nd Wing.
The U.S.-led training is “in support of the international effort to develop and strengthen Ukraine’s long-term defenses,” Ryder said.
The Netherlands and Denmark have announced their intentions to make F-16 aircraft from their fleets available to Ukraine.
Many NATO allies have F-16s - originally designed in the 1970s - making it easier to find spare parts compared with the Russian planes currently used by Ukraine.
A further 12 aircraft are due to be sold to a private company providing training for the U.S. Air Force, although this deal has yet to receive final approval and some analysts have said these jets could be suitable for a donation to Ukraine.