Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren has confirmed that the 24 F-16 fighter jets the Netherlands plans to donate to Ukraine can be used to strike targets inside Russia. This stance contrasts with Belgian policy, where Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has restricted the use of donated F-16s to prevent their deployment in Russian airspace.
In an interview at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Ollongren emphasized that the Netherlands would not impose limitations similar to Belgium’s. “There is not” a Belgian-style restriction, she stated. “We are applying the same principle that we have applied to every other delivery of capabilities, which is once we hand it over to Ukraine, it’s theirs to use.”
Ollongren clarified that the only condition imposed is compliance with international law and the right to self-defense as outlined in the U.N. Charter. This means Ukraine can use the F-16s to target military objectives necessary for its self-defense.
The Dutch defense minister and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin were among senior officials who met with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Singapore conference on Sunday.
In addition to the F-16 commitment, the Netherlands has pledged to maintain its naval presence in the South China Sea, a region where Southeast Asian countries are increasingly wary of China’s assertive behavior. A Dutch frigate recently crossed the Taiwan Strait without incident, although Ollongren noted a Chinese helicopter’s attempt to approach a Dutch helicopter during a joint exercise with the U.S. over the South China Sea as “remarkable.”
Ollongren, who will step down as Dutch defense minister following the swearing-in of the country’s new -right wing government, expressed hope that the incoming administration will continue to support NATO and Ukraine. “I think it’s vital that we continue to play that role. I have seen in the program for [the] new government that the support [for] Ukraine will continue, that the new government also values the European Union, NATO, etc.,” she said.
