UK, German defense ministers: Decision on providing Ukraine with F-16s depends on United States

Great Britain and Germany cannot send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, as the decision on the supply of such aircraft depends on the United States.

The German and UK Defense Ministers, Boris Pistorius and Ben Wallace, stated this at a press conference following the talks in Berlin, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"What we can, obviously contribute, is training," Wallace said.

According to him, currently it is not about the supply of aircraft, but about the creation of a platform.

In turn, Pistorius said: "Germany... doesn’t play an active role in such an alliance, in such a coalition, because we have neither the training capacities, the competencies or the planes... This is not an issue that is decided in Berlin, it is decided in the White House."

According to him, Germany supports the transfer of such weapons that the Armed Forces can use immediately. Currently, tanks, air defense systems, and ammunition are most in demand.

At the same time, Wallace added that the current discussion is important from the point of view of a signal to Russia about the readiness of Western partners to provide Ukraine with everything it needs.

As reported earlier, the British government announced that training for Ukrainian pilots will begin this summer.