Russia threatens Western nations over F-16s provided to Ukraine

The Dutch Ministry of Defense has donated 24 F-16 fighter jets, but there’s a major difference than previous arsenal donated by Western nations.

According to NL Times, the use of these US-made fighter jets won’t be limited to defending the Kharkiv region, as it is the case with the weapons provided by Washington DC.

Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Hanke Bruins Slot explained that despite being manufactured by the United States, they do not require Washington's approval to be used in Ukraine.

This is a serious departure from the consensus established by the governments of the United States, Germany, and France, that limits the use of weapons given to Kyiv to protect the city and region of Kharkiv, the second-largest urban center in Ukraine.

However, it follows the line established by the British government, which argues that Ukraine should use its arsenal at Kyiv’s discretion, despite growing tensions with Moscow.

AP News writes that a senior Ukrainian military officer revealed that Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, and Denmark, would provide a total of over 60 fighter jets later in 2024.

Serhii Holubtsov, the head of aviation of the Ukrainian Air Force, was quoted by AP News affirming that they would keep a certain number of planes outside the country, to avoid becoming a target for Russian attacks.

This creates further tension between the West and the Kremlin, which has been critical of how the United States, France, Germany, and now The Netherlands are directly providing weapons to Kyiv.

“F-16s are capable of carrying nuclear weapons, and we will also need to take that into account while organizing our combat operations,” Putin stated, as quoted by AP News.

“If they are stationed at air bases outside the Ukrainian borders and used in combat, we will have to see how and where to strike the assets used in combat against us,” Putin declared, back in 2023.

Many people wonder if this escalation between NATO members and Moscow could just be the beginning of global conflict of the likes humanity has not seen in over 80 years.

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