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CNN: US gives approval to Denmark on F-16 instructional materials for Ukraine

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CNN: US gives approval to Denmark on F-16 instructional materials for Ukraine
Portuguese Air Force F-16 fighter jets during NATO's Baltic Air Policing Mission in Lithuanian airspace near Siauliai on May 23, 2023. (AFP via Getty Images)

The U.S. has approved Denmark's request to provide instructional materials for F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, CNN reported on Aug. 18, citing a Biden administration official and another U.S. official.

"We can confirm the Department has recently approved a request from F-16 training partner Denmark related to their effort to stand up pilot and maintenance training programs," said the official in the U.S. President Joe Biden's administration.

This will include training modules, documentation, and classroom training materials, containing sensitive information on U.S. technology, CNN reported.

Earlier today on Aug. 18, Denmark and the Netherlands confirmed that they had received approval from the U.S. to hand over F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine once pilot training is completed. According to Reuters, U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken backed both the transfer of the jets and training for Ukrainian pilots in a letter to his Danish and Dutch counterparts.

The Danish Defense Ministry confirmed today on Aug. 18 that the training of Ukrainian pilots will begin in Denmark later in August in cooperation with the 11 countries of the "fighter jet coalition."

During the Vilnius NATO summit in July, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov announced the official formation of a coalition to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16s, led by Denmark and the Netherlands.

The coalition also plans to conduct training in Romania. While the members have not published a precise timeframe for the training process, the Washington Post reported that according to Ukrainian officials, the first group of six pilots will not finish their training before the summer of 2024.

Kuleba: F-16 fighter jets may arrive as soon as pilots complete training
Ukraine could receive F-16 fighter jets around the same time when Ukrainian pilots complete their training on the aircraft, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said, Interfax-Ukraine reported on Aug. 17.
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Martin Fornusek

Senior News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

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