All Western F-16s supplied to Ukraine will be 'wiped out' in 20 days

RT reported that on November 1, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said that in October, the country's air defense forces achieved a high success rate in shooting down Ukrainian military aircraft.

At this rate, he declared, the entire fleet of F-16s that Western sponsors pledged to give to Kiev would be "wiped out" in less than three weeks.

"Russian air defense forces carried out more than 1,400 successful interceptions in October, including 37 of Ukrainian fighter jets, almost twice the number of F-16s that foreign countries promised to provide Kiev with aid," Shoigu said at a ministerial meeting.

The Russian general predicted: “If our air defense forces continue to operate so effectively, the entire Ukrainian F-16 squadron will be shot down in about 20 days.”

The planes shot down last month were mainly Soviet-designed MiG-29s and Su-25s, according to the Russian Defense Ministry . Shoigu has said the Russian military has used “new complexes” to improve its interception capabilities.

A source quoted by TASS news agency said that Russia used A-50 airborne radar aircraft to detect Ukrainian targets earlier. The interceptions were said to have been “achieved” thanks to long-range anti-aircraft missiles fired from S-400 launchers, which have new warheads and are guided using data from airborne radars.

Since the start of the conflict with Moscow, Kiev has pushed its allies to provide increasingly advanced weapons.

The Netherlands, Denmark, Norway and Belgium have committed to delivering F-16 fighter jets over the next few years, as part of their transition to more modern military aircraft.

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky sits on an F-16 fighter jet in Vojens, Denmark. (Photo: RT)

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on October 30 that the first F-16s allocated by his government will go to a military base in Romania, where they will train Ukrainians within two weeks.

Reports on how many F-16s Ukraine may receive are inconsistent. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said in August that the country had been promised 42 F-16s by the Netherlands and Belgium, but a joint statement by the donors did not mention a specific number.

The Dutch prime minister said at the time that his country's entire F-16 fleet had 42 aircraft and they would need to keep some for themselves.

Mr Zelensky hailed the F-16 aid pledge announcement by supporters as “historic, strong and motivating”.

Meanwhile, Kiev’s supporters believe that Western-designed weapons will be a game-changer in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Hopes are pinned on powerful hardware such as the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, Storm Shadow cruise missiles, Leopard main battle tanks and ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles.

The Kremlin has hit back, saying that new Western weapons supplied to Ukraine “will go up in flames like all the previous ones.”

Hoa Vu (Source: actualidad.rt.com)

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