The Ukrainian military may receive F-16 fighters by the end of 2023, but they will not be able to fundamentally change the situation on the battlefield. The Armed Forces are in dire need of artillery.
This was stated by the National Security Council of the White House coordinator, John Kirby, FOX News reports.
"F-16s will be delivered to Ukraine, probably closer to the end of the year. But, according to our assessment, F-16s alone will not be able to make changes (on the battlefield - ed.). They really need artillery the most. And that is why the U.S. President made a difficult decision to transfer cluster munitions. They fire thousands."
According to him, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) most need artillery, ammunition, anti-aircraft defense, and armor - tanks and infantry fighting vehicles.
"On all these points, we have provided an incredible amount of assistance and, frankly, at an unprecedented speed. These are the four areas that they need. If you look at the assistance packages like the one we announced yesterday - and there will be another one soon - you will see that we are really trying to provide them with these opportunities," the coordinator added.
He also added that the supply of aircraft will be effective only in combination with other weapons that are needed for the AFU.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the Commander-in-Chief of the AFU, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, said that for successful advancement on the front, Ukraine needs a lot of shells and necessarily F-16 fighter jets.
Earlier, Zaluzhnyi spoke with American General Milli and told him about the counteroffensive of the AFU.
