MOSCOW, June 29. /TASS/. The Australian air force’s fleet of decommissioned F-18 Hornet fighter jets could potentially be sent to Ukraine, Russian Ambassador to Canberra Alexey Pavlovsky said.

"The issue [for discussion] exists, judging by leaks. Perhaps it is a subject for trilateral consultations between Australia, Ukraine and the US," he told the Rossiya-24 TV channel. "These aircraft - there are 41 fourth-generation planes - have been taken out of service, although they still have some flying life left, so I believe that their delivery to Ukraine cannot be ruled out," the envoy said.

The diplomat also pointed out that Australia’s military aid to Ukraine "exceeded 400 mln US dollars with the latest package." "Apart from the military equipment that was mentioned before, drones and anti-drone weapons are also being supplied; and there is a joint project with France to produce 155 mm munitions for NATO-standard artillery," Pavlovsky added.

Since March 2022, Australia has provided Ukraine with 90 Bushmaster armored vehicles, six M777 howitzers, 56 M113 armored personnel carriers, and 28 MAN 40M trucks, as well as anti-tank and other weapons. In addition, Canberra promised to send a batch of unmanned aerial vehicles to Kiev. In addition, the Australian authorities are discussing the possibility of handing 41 decommissioned F-18 Hornet aircraft over to Ukraine. Canberra’s financial aid to Kiev has exceeded 790 mln Australian dollars ($527.7 mln), out of which over 610 mln Australian dollars ($407.5 mln) were spent on weapons purchases.