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The US still forbids Ukraine from hitting Russian territory with ATACMS missiles.The US has allowed Ukrainian forces to use artillery and launch short-range missiles against military facilities in Russian territory that are used for attacks on the Kharkiv region. However, US authorization to use American weapons within Russia does not extend to the use of long-range ATACMS missiles. Authorized weapons include GMLRS-guided munitions, HIMARS systems, and artillery systems. As the WSJ explained, the narrow geographical area where the use of US weapons is authorized is an attempt by the Biden administration to help Ukraine better defend itself against Russia's offensive in the Kharkiv Region while limiting the risk of the conflict turning into a confrontation between Washington and Moscow. The European Commission believesthat, according to international law, Ukraine has the right to defend itself by striking military facilities in the Russian Federation. At the same time, it is up to the countries that supply the weapons to provide appropriate permission. As previously noted by Jens Stoltenberg during the NATO ministerial meeting, Ukraine has the right to strike at the Russian Federation, and more of Ukraine’s allies have agreed with this.
- F-16 Jets
The first F-16s will arrive this summer, together with more ammunition and armored vehicles from our allies. The head of the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands, Kajsa Ollongren, said that Ukraine will receive the first F-16 fighter jets from its Western allies this summer. Moreover, Ukraine will have the right to use these F-16s to strike military targets in the Russian Federation. Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway promised to transfer 60 F-16 fighters.
“Ukraine may keep some of the F-16 fighter jets it's set to receive from its Western allies at foreign bases to protect them from Russian strikes,” Serhii Holubtsov, head of aviation within Ukraine’s air force, told RFE/RL. He said the aircraft will not directly participate in combat operations, serving instead as replacements for planes lost or damaged in the war and in training exercises for Ukrainian pilots learning the aircraft.
(Ukrainian officials have expressed impatience with the pace of training Ukrainian pilots to fly F16s. Earlier this month, POLITICO reported that the U.S. has agreed to train only a dozen pilots beginning in September, while Kyiv has offered 30 candidates to begin exercises immediately.)
Kyiv wants the United States to train more Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, but the US says there are limited spots and too many customers from other nations, Politico reported on June 5, citing Ukrainian and US officials. Several countries, including the US, have pledged to assist Ukrainian aviators with the necessary training under the F-16 coalition framework.
A total of 20 Ukrainian pilots are anticipate to complete F-16 training by the end of 2024. That number is only half of the 40 aviators needed to operate a full squadron of 20 F-16 jets.
Eight new pilots will begin training at the facility in Romania, while another eight are set to undergo training at the Tucson base. For the rest of the year, across all training sites, only four spots will be available for Ukrainian pilots, one official told Politico.
Ukraine will not have a full squadron of pilots before the end of 2025, a former U.S. Defense Dapartment official told Politico.
The first Ukrainian pilots began their training at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Arizona, last October. Ukraine says it has 30 pilots prepared to
45 UKRAINE Country Report July 2024 www.intellinews.com