Belgium delays transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine

Belgium is postponing the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, as the country awaits the arrival of its first F-35s from the United States.

Thus, Belgium is expected to receive its first four F-35 jets by October—provided there are no further delays, Caliber.Az reports, citing Belgian media.

The original delivery of the initial batch of 34 F-35s, ordered in 2018, was scheduled for 2022 but has since been repeatedly pushed back.

Brussels had pledged to begin handing over its ageing fleet of F-16s to Kyiv once it received the newer American-built jets. Ukraine was initially set to receive two of Belgium’s retired F-16s in December 2024, a date that was later moved to March 2025 and has now been postponed again to October or November this year.

Belgium currently has 54 F-16 fighter jets in its inventory, although it remains unclear how many are operational.

The Belgian government is also considering an additional order of 11 F-35s from the US as part of a broader effort to ramp up military spending and enhance the capabilities of its armed forces.

By Aghakazim Guliyev