Denmark refutes claims regarding the death of its F-16 instructor in Ukraine

Denmark has refuted claims from Russian media suggesting that a Danish F-16 instructor was killed by a Russian missile strike in Ukraine.

Over the weekend, the state-run TASS news agency in Russia reported, citing “law enforcement sources,” that a Danish individual named Jepp Hansen had died in an attack on a training facility located in Krivoy Rog, Dnepropetrovsk Region, central Ukraine.

In a statement released on Monday, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen characterized the report as “misinformation.”

“No Danish soldiers have been killed in Ukraine,” Poulsen stated. “This is a false narrative that has been propagated by Russian media, likely aimed at discrediting Denmark,” he further noted.

The Russian media asserted that Hansen’s death was “confirmed” by a friend on social media. However, other posts on X indicated that the account purportedly belonging to his friend did not actually exist.

Denmark has committed to supplying 19 US-made F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced that the first batch of six jets would be delivered in November. Additionally, Danish instructors have been training Ukrainian pilots at an airbase in Denmark, as reported by NATO and the Danish government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has cautioned that all NATO personnel and weaponry in Ukraine will be regarded as legitimate targets for Russian forces, asserting that no level of Western assistance will deter Russian soldiers in Ukraine.