U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that Ukraine has reclaimed half of the territories seized by Russia since the beginning of the invasion, but Kyiv is facing a "very difficult battle" to reclaim more land. In an interview with CNN on Sunday, he stated, "Ukraine has already regained about 50 percent of the territory initially seized by Russia." He added, "We are still somewhat in the early days of the counteroffensive. It's tough... It won't be over in a week or two. We think it will continue for several months."
When asked if Ukraine would receive U.S. F-16 fighter jets, Blinken expressed his belief that Kyiv would get them. He further mentioned, "The focus is on ensuring that when they receive [the aircraft], they must be well trained and able to maintain and use them intelligently." An alliance of 11 countries will begin training Ukrainian pilots to operate F-16 fighter jets in August in Denmark, with a training center to be established in Romania. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion in February 2022, the United States has provided military aid to Ukraine exceeding $41 billion.
