The Netherlands and Denmark announced their intent to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter aircraft on Sunday.

While United States and Ukrainian officials acknowledged last week that they will not have F-16s on the battlefield this calendar year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the Sunday announcement from two of its European allies as “historic.”

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“It makes me proud that Denmark, together with the Netherlands, will donate F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine’s fight for freedom against Russia and its senseless aggression. Denmark’s support for Ukraine is unwavering, and with the donation of F-16 aircraft, Denmark is now leading the way,” Danish Defense Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen said in a statement.

The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed in a statement it had agreed to gradually provide 19 F-16s, while Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, speaking at a joint press conference with Zelensky at Eindhoven airport, said the Netherlands has 42 F-16s available but did not specify if all of those would be provided to Ukraine.

Ukraine's leader described the agreement as “the most important” yet, adding, “The Netherlands became the first country to agree to provide Ukraine with F-16s after training. I am very grateful," according to CNN.

The announcement came days after Secretary of State Antony Blinken gave Denmark and the Netherlands official assurances that the United States will expedite approval of transfer requests for F-16s to go to Ukraine when the pilots are trained, a U.S. official told the Washington Examiner.

The Ukrainian air force identified 32 pilots that would undergo the F-16 training, but only eight know English well enough to begin the highly complex training immediately, the official explained, noting that the average Ukrainian squadron is between 12-16 pilots. Those pilots who don't have the requisite English knowledge will be going through an English language training program in the U.K. that will take between 4-6 months prior to beginning the aircraft training.

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Ukrainian leaders have sought fourth-generation aircraft from its Western allies for months, but it wasn't until this spring that President Joe Biden changed his mind on their request.

Ukraine officials have suggested that their counteroffensive, which has yielded less than ideal outcomes thus far for Kyiv, would be more likely to succeed if they were able to establish air superiority over the battlefield.