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after a ukrainian f-16 fighter jet crashed, president zelensky ordered the replacement of air force commander oleschuk. american experts have been involved in investigating the cause of the accident. ukrainian defense minister umerov visited the pentagon on the 30th and held talks with us defense secretary austin. the eu plans to train about 75,000 ukrainian soldiers by the end of this year and continue to increase military aid to ukraine.

ukrainian president zelensky announced in a speech on the evening of the 30th thathe has replaced the air force commander oleschuk,emphasizing the need to strengthen command and protect soldiers, the ukrainian general staff announced that krivonozko will temporarily assume the duties of air force commander.

a western-supplied f-16 fighter jet of the ukrainian military crashed a few days ago, killing the pilot. the deputy chairman of the defense committee of the ukrainian parliament earlier quoted a source as saying that the fighter jet in question was shot down by a patriot missile. olshuk accused the relevant parliamentarians of slandering the ukrainian air force and discrediting american weapons manufacturers.

the ukrainian air force did not directly deny that the fighter jet was shot down by a patriot missile, but pointed out thatamerican experts have joined the investigationreuters quoted a u.s. department of defense official as saying that the fighter jet did not appear to have been shot down by the russian military, but whether it was due to pilot error or machine failure remains to be investigated.

according to french media reports, ukrainian fighter jets did not take off from a military base because russia knew the location of the base, so the ukrainian army was forced to use a section of road as a runway, but taking off in this situation is more risky than using a traditional runway.

in addition, the british daily telegraph reported:there are only five pilots left in ukraine who have received f-16 training.however, some experts believe that the accident will not affect the transfer of another f-16 fighter jet by western countries to ukraine.

ukrainian defense minister umerov visited the pentagon on the 30th and held talks with us secretary of defense austin.

austin said that russia's recent attacks on critical civilian infrastructure were absolutely unacceptable. he praised the ukrainian armed forces for their firm resistance to the russian attacks and for inflicting heavy damage on russian troops.a meeting of the ukrainian defense contact group next week will provide further impetus for meeting ukraine’s air defense needs.

u.s. secretary of defense austin:

"so make no mistake: the united states will not waver in its support for a free, secure, and sovereign ukraine, and along with our more than 50 allies and partners, the united states will continue to provide the critical capabilities you need to confront russia."

ukrainian defense minister umerov:

"in today's meeting we will discuss in detail the situation on the (ukrainian) front, including our vision, goals and plans. we will also touch on ukraine's key needs, including required weapons, equipment and training."

umerov said the meeting would also focus on the progress of ukraine's domestic production of weapons. he pointed out that in the past two years, ukraine has established hundreds of new defense enterprises that can quickly produce high-quality weapons and quickly deliver them to the battlefield.

earlier in the day, umerov stressed at an informal meeting of eu defense ministers that building a security belt in western ukraine and increasing investment in ukraine's defense industry are crucial to enhancing european security.

high representative of the european union for foreign affairs and security policyborrell announced on the 30th,the eu will further expand its military training program for the ukrainian army.according to the latest decision, the eu will increase its training target this year from 60,000 soldiers to 75,000. in addition, borrell suggested setting up a small coordination center in kiev to carry out training tasks more effectively.

eu high representative for foreign affairs and security policy josep borrell:

"it is great news that today ministers agreed to raise the target to 75,000, or a further 15,000 by the end of the year. if ukraine asks, we will do more. this war requires constant adaptation to the way it is fought. training times must be shortened and adapted to ukraine's needs."

but,there remains controversy among eu member states over the issue of providing training for ukrainian soldiers.some eu member states, such as estonia, france and sweden, support training inside ukraine, but others, including hungary, oppose sending any european military personnel into ukraine.

the meeting was originally planned to be held in budapest, the capital of hungary, the rotating presidency of the european council, but was eventually held in brussels. borrell explained that some of the hungarian government's positions conflicted with those of the eu, so he chose to hold the meeting in brussels.