Ukraine hopes the advanced US-made jets will help it gain air superiority over Russia and better protect its troops and cities from daily bombardments by Moscow’s troops.

“Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against air attacks is crucial in its battle against Russia”, Store said.

“Norway has now decided to donate six F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. We plan to start delivering the aircraft in the course of 2024.”

The announcement came as Denmark and the Netherlands have begun transferring F-16s to Ukraine, the White House said.

“Combined with air defence systems, the fighter jets will be vital to enabling the Ukrainians to defend themselves against Russian air attacks”, Store added.

The prime minister said Norway would continue to support the training of Ukrainian fighter pilots that began last fall on the Skrydstrup air base in Denmark.

Russia has said its forces will target any Western military hardware, including F-16s, shipped to Kyiv.

Last week its military claimed to have hit three Ukrainian air bases in as many days, raising concerns about Kyiv’s ability to protect its airfields ahead of the arrival of the F-16s.

As part of its support for Ukraine, the Norwegian Defence Equipment Agency struck a more than one-billion Norwegian kroner ($93 million) deal on Tuesday with the Finnish-Norwegian defence group Nammo to ramp up production of artillery and missile ammunition.

Nammo will invest in a new production line allowing it to increase the output of artillery shells tenfold.

The deal is “of great importance for Ukraine, for the security of allies and for our own national preparedness”, Norway’s premier said.