Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Western F-16 fighters, which partners promised to deliver by the end of 2024, will not be enough to fight on the same level with the Russian air fleet.

"The decision about the F-16 is strategic. The number [of aircraft] is not strategic yet... I cannot say now how many of these aircraft there will be. They will not be enough – for what? They will definitely strengthen us, but will these aircraft be enough to fight on par with the Russian air fleet? I believe that there will not be enough of them. Are we expecting more? Yes," Zelenskyy said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.

As he noted, "we talked with both the president [of the United States] and the Congress." "Why I also started working with local authorities in the United States – they have great influence on both Congress and the central government, because in some states there are key production facilities for aircraft, Patriots, and others. And when we come to an agreement with them, they have appropriate signals and influence on other people in the U.S. power," he said.

Zelenskyy also said Ukraine today needs to reduce the training time for pilots on the F-16, expand the training base and increase the number of aircraft in the near future, and not in three, four, five years.

"This is the task. We raise all these questions. You need to work on this daily. We are also working on [receiving] other aircraft," he said.