US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hopes that training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighters will begin in the coming weeks.

 Austin said this in his speech during an online meeting in the Rammstein format.

 "President Biden announced last week that the United States will support a joint effort with our allies and partners to train Ukrainian pilots on fourth-generation aircraft, including the F-16. We hope to begin this training in the coming weeks," Austin said.

 He emphasized that this will contribute to the further strengthening and improvement of the capabilities of the Ukrainian Air Force in the long term.

 "And it will complement our short- and medium-term security agreements. This new joint effort sends a strong signal of our unity and our long-term commitment to Ukraine's self-defense," Austin said.

 Josep Borrell, head of the European Union's foreign policy service, said on Tuesday that training of Ukrainian pilots had begun in Poland and some other countries.