Belgium can supply F-16s to Ukraine this year

While it had previously passed on the hot potato, the De Croo government decided on Friday to deliver F-16 fighter planes to Ukraine this year, if possible. That effort is paid for with tax revenue from Russian assets at Euroclear.

At the launch of the F-16 coalition for Ukraine in 2023, Army Chief of Staff Michel Hofman and Minister of Defense Ludivine Dedonder (PS) announced that the Belgian army had no room to donate F-16 fighter planes to Ukraine . According to them, the army needed this to carry out its own missions.

That is why Belgian participation in the coalition was limited to assistance with the training of Ukrainian F-16 pilots. With experienced pilots who have to switch from the familiar Russian MiG to the F-16, this can easily take six months.

The decision on the delivery of F-16s was passed on to the next government. Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD) said in October that Belgium will be able to supply F-16s from 2025, if the government gives the green light at that time. The first F-35s will be deployed from 2025, to replace the F-16s.

Nevertheless, the government decided on Friday, at one of the last councils of ministers before the elections of June 9, to deliver Belgian F-16s to Ukraine ‘as soon as possible’, this year if possible. “This important decision shows that Defense and our country remain committed and will continue to support Ukraine as long as the Russian invasion lasts,” Dedonder said.

The number of aircraft delivered depends on Kiev’s demand and capacity. Belgium can supply up to four F-16s. In addition, Belgium will send additional missiles for air defense systems to protect the population and critical infrastructure against attacks by Russian drones and missiles, Dedonder said.

The federal decision is a response to Ukraine’s demand for more military support in the air and to the decision of Western allies to provide additional resources.

In that context, it was difficult for De Croo, as the face of the Belgian presidency of the EU, to keep pushing things ahead. All the more so because the next government may still have to wait a while. Together with Deputy Prime Minister David Clarinval (MR), he carried out the forcing and got Dedonder and the Greens to stop resisting.

Clarinval responded with satisfaction. ‘The MR was the requesting party from the start, and now the time has come. We are stepping up our support to Ukraine by deciding today to send our F-16s to protect the Ukrainians.”

Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway have jointly pledged dozens of aircraft, but their delivery depends on the availability of Ukrainian pilots. The F-16s may not be deployed on Russian territory, but should provide more support to Ukrainian ground forces and prevent the Russians from deploying fighter planes and helicopters themselves.

De Croo emphasized that deliveries to Ukraine are not at the expense of the Belgian taxpayer. The financing comes from Russian assets parked at the Brussels securities giant Euroclear. The Belgian government has been using the taxes that must be paid on it for some time to finance Ukraine’s war efforts. With the profits from those assets, the European Union wants to finance military aid for Ukraine.