Norway will donate United States-made F-16 combat aircraft to Ukraine, the Norwegian prime minister has announced during a visit to the country as local officials say Ukrainian troops have carried out a landing in Crimea.
F-16s have been on Ukraine's wish list for a long time because of their destructive power and global availability.
The fighter jet is equipped with a 20mm cannon and can carry bombs, rockets and missiles.
"We are planning to donate Norwegian F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, and will provide further details about the donation, numbers and time frame for delivery, in due course," Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said.
Stoere met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv earlier on Thursday and announced donations of anti-aircraft missiles and other equipment.
"The donation of these F-16 jets will significantly strengthen Ukraine's military capabilities," Norway's Defence Minister Bjoern Arild Gram said in the statement.
Many NATO allies have F-16s - originally designed in the 1970s - making it easier to find spare parts compared with the Russian planes currently used by Ukraine.
Last year, the Norwegian air force retired its fleet of 57 F-16s and later agreed to sell 32 of them to NATO ally Romania in what Stoere has said was a "fixed and settled" deal.
A further 12 aircraft are due to be sold to a private company providing training for the US air force although this deal has yet to receive final approval and some analysts have said these jets could be suitable for a donation to Ukraine.
Of the 13 remaining F-16s, the Norwegian defence ministry said last year many were too costly or hard to repair and might be placed in a museum, used for parts or sent for scrapping.
Norway has replaced its F-16s with the successor model F-35.
Ukrainian officials said on Thursday their troops landed in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that was annexed by Russia in 2014 and which Ukraine says it is committed to retaking.
Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) carried out the landing "as part of a special operation" and "all tasks were fulfilled," agency spokesman Andrey Yusov said.
Russian media reported the attack took place at Cape Tarkhankut, in the far west of Crimea, and that the Ukrainian forces had been repelled.
According to the Russian news outlets Mash and Shot, which deliver their reports on the social media platform Telegram, the Ukrainian forces landed in rubber boats near a campsite.
Holiday-makers there were startled by gunshots and explosions, they reported.
Shot reported, citing Russian intelligence circles, that the crews of four inflatable boats - about 15 to 20 men - were later killed.
Yusov denied Ukrainian losses in the course of the commando action and said it was Russian forces who were weakened, although he did not give a precise number of casualties.
The battlefield claims could not be independently verified.
Meanwhile, Zelenskiy marked the country's 32nd Independence Day on Thursday by appealing for unity in the face of Russia's full-scale invasion, which began exactly 18 months ago.
In a video message Zelenskiy thanked soldiers, armament workers, electricians, journalists, deminers, teachers, doctors and athletes for their efforts and recalled the sacrifices made.
"Everyone who works and gives work to others is important," he said.
All those who pay taxes helped support the armed forces and ensure "future victory," Zelenskiy said.
Ukraine's Independence Day commemorates the declaration of independence from the Soviet Union adopted on August 24, 1991.
Despite some success in Ukraine's counteroffensive against Russian forces, Russia continues to control almost one-fifth of its neighbour's territory, including the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea.
with DPA
