German Chancellor Rules Out Berlin's Participation in F-16 Fighter Jets Delivery to Ukraine
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his country's participation in a potential delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine is not being considered.
"First of all, everyone knows that we don't even have such planes," Scholz remarked during an interview with RTL and Ntv television channels while attending the Group of Seven (G7) Summit in Japan.
Scholz reiterated that Germany is the second largest supporter of Ukraine after the United States. "We will help Ukraine as long as it takes, financially, humanely and militarily," he pointed out, adding that all of this is "directly related to what is happening in Ukraine, where the government in Kiev and the servicemen are now planning an offensive for early summer."
US President Joe Biden said at a meeting with G7 leaders in Hiroshima that Washington will support international efforts to train Ukrainian pilots to fly modern fighter jets, including F-16 planes.
On Saturday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandr Grushko, commenting on intentions to supply Kiev with F-16 jets, said that Western countries continue on the path of escalation in the Ukrainian conflict, but Russia will take this into account in its plans.
