{"id":65806,"date":"2024-08-04T20:02:27","date_gmt":"2024-08-04T20:02:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/ukraine-receives-first-f-16-fighter-jets-zelensky"},"modified":"2024-08-04T20:25:07","modified_gmt":"2024-08-04T20:25:07","slug":"ukraine-receives-first-f-16-fighter-jets-zelensky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/ukraine-receives-first-f-16-fighter-jets-zelensky","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine receives first F-16 fighter jets \u2013 Zelensky"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mozambique. <\/strong><\/span>Ukraine has received its first American-made F-16 fighter jets, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.<\/p>\n

“F-16 in Ukraine. We did it,” President Zelensky said at a ceremony at a secret location, flanked by the jets.<\/p>\n

He thanked Denmark, the Netherlands and the US in particular for helping deliver the jets following 18 months of waiting – though added that many more were needed.<\/p>\n

Their arrival marks a crucial milestone in boosting the capabilities of Ukraine’s air force, which largely relies on old Soviet-era jets.<\/p>\n

Mr Zelensky did not specify how many aircraft had arrived in Ukraine – or whether they had all been sent by the three Nato countries he mentioned.<\/p>\n

Some 65 F-16s have been pledged by Nato countries since US President Joe Biden first authorised willing European allies to send them to Ukraine in August 2023.<\/p>\n

The UK does not have any F-16s in its air force, though it is supplying long-range Storm Shadow missiles which can be fitted to the jets.<\/p>\n

The F-16 was introduced in 1978. Many Western militaries are in the process of retiring the ageing fighters, replacing them with the US-made F-35, introduced in 2015.<\/p>\n

The F-16s will work alongside a limited number of Western-supplied surface-to-air missile systems such as Patriot and NASAMS which are already on the ground.<\/p>\n

This year Ukraine has been under huge threat from Russian glide bombs – bombs fitted with pop-out wing kits and guidance modules to deliver precision strike stand-off capabilities, similar to the JDAM munitions from the United States.<\/p>\n

Around 3,000 were dropped in March alone, mostly from Su-34 fighter-bombers.<\/p>\n

If Ukraine can protect its F-16s on the ground, the hope is that they could play an important part in pushing back Russian aircraft to a point where they can no longer target Ukrainian ground forces with glide bombs.<\/p>\n

Kyiv had suggested that it could keep some F-16s at foreign military bases, but that suggestion prompted President Vladimir Putin to warn that any Western bases storing Ukrainian jets would be a legitimate military target for Russia.<\/p>\n

Experts also say the fighters could provide much needed air support to Ukrainian ground forces, who have faced relentless attacks in recent months, especially in the eastern Donbas region.<\/p>\n

Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov previously vowed that Western-made F-16s flying for Ukraine would be “shot down”.<\/p>\n

“But of course, these deliveries will not have any significant impact on the development of events on the front,” he added.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mozambique Follow Africa-Press<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mozambique. Ukraine has received its first American-made F-16 fighter jets, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. “F-16 in Ukraine. We did it,” President Zelensky said at a ceremony at a secret location, flanked by the jets. He thanked Denmark, the Netherlands and the US in particular for helping deliver the jets following 18 months […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":65805,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,9],"tags":[283],"class_list":["post-65806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-miscellaneous","tag-mozambique"],"yoast_head":"\nUkraine receives first F-16 fighter jets \u2013 Zelensky - Mozambique<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ukraine has received its first American-made F-16 fighter jets, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. 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