Biden To Meet With Zelensky In Hiroshima As White House Reverses On Providing Ukraine F16s

Washington D.C./20.05.23/Turan:    The White House on Friday confirmed President Joe Biden's intention to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in person at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

The move comes as the Biden administration appears to have reversed its previous objections to providing Ukraine with F16 fighter jets.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed to reporters that Biden told his G7 counterparts that the U.S. would support a joint effort to train Ukrainian pilots on the fighter jets, suggesting the decision came at a turning point in the war and was meant as a “long term commitment to Ukrainian self defense.”

"Our view is that where the F16 fits into the fight is not right now,” he emphasized, while declining to provide a timetable for how long the training would take place.

President Zelenskyy already welcomed the news calling Washington's decision "historic". In a statement on Twitter, he noted the move would greatly enhance Ukraine's army in the sky.

Countries participating in the joint training initiative will decide when to provide the jets after the training and how many of the warplanes to send to Kyiv.

Alex Raufoglu