The Russian government said it «cannot ignore» that the planes have the potential to deliver nuclear weapons.
The Russian government is warning Ukraine that Kyiv’s new fleet of F-16 fighter jets will be treated as a «nuclear-capable» threat.
Ukraine’s military said last week that it would begin operating the U.S.-made jets as soon as Monday. Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson Ilya Yevlash said that the planes would be ready for battle after Orthodox Easter, which was Sunday.
The F-16s—provided by Western allies including Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium—will represent a much-needed update to Ukraine’s aging fleet of largely Soviet-made aircraft that have been battered and depleted after more than two years of combat.
While F-16s can accommodate certain nuclear weapons in the right configuration, Ukraine does not have a nuclear arsenal and there have been no indications that any allies who do possess nuclear weapons intend on sharing them with Kyiv.
Regardless, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned Ukraine in a statement on Monday that it «cannot ignore» the possibility that the planes could have the capability of delivering nuclear weapons.
