A file photo of a Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16. The Dutch government has said it will provide EUR450 million in weapons for the F-16s to be transferred to Ukraine. (US Department of Defense)
The Netherlands is to triple the value of the munitions it is to provide to arm the soon-to-be-delivered Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft, increasing the weapons package to Ukraine to EUR450 million (USD487 million).
Having previously pledged EUR150 million worth of weapons in March, the Dutch Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced a further EUR300 million on 10 July.
“The Ukrainians should not be able to fly the F-16s alone. They also have to be able to deploy the devices,” Netherlands Minister of Defence Ruben Brekelmans said. “Armament is therefore crucial. With the ammunition we purchase, the F-16s can help repel Russian attacks […] Russia must not win this war; this is also in the interest of our security.”
The Netherlands is contributing F-16s and their associated weapons to Ukraine as part of the wider ‘F-16 coalition' that also comprises Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The Dutch are transferring 24 F-16AM/BM Block 15 Mid-Life Update (MLU) aircraft to Ukraine, as well as a further 18 to the European F-16 Training Center in Romania. Belgium, Denmark, and Norway are donating 30, 19, and six F-16AM/BM Block 15 MLU aircraft respectively. In all, 79 F-16AM/BM Block 15 MLU jets are being transferred, with others likely to follow.
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