The US’s top military officer says training for Ukrainian forces on advanced US Abrams tanks has started, but those weapons crucial over the long term in trying to expel Russia from occupied territory will not be ready in time for Kyiv’s imminent counteroffensive.

The tank training got under way as the US and its allies began to work out agreements to train Ukrainians on F-16 fighter jets, another long-sought advanced system that would be part of a security plan to deter future attacks, US army general Mark Milley said on Thursday as he arrived in France, AP reports.

Milley said:

"Everyone recognises Ukraine needs a modernised air force. It’s going to take a considerable amount of time."

Milley said detailed planning on the size of F-16 training classes, the types of flying tactics and locations for training was being worked out among the US and allies such as the Netherlands and Britain that have pledged to provide the US-made F-16s. The United States has not said whether it will directly provide jets, but President Joe Biden has said the US will support F-16 training as part of the coalition.

About 200 Ukrainian soldiers began an approximately 12-week training course in Germany over the past weekend where they are learning how to manoeuvre, fire and conduct combined arms operations with the advanced armoured system. An additional 200 troops are receiving training on tank fuelling and fuel truck maintenance.

Milley is in France to mark the 79th anniversary of D-day, where he said:

"You can look back to the second world war and some of the biggest armoured battles that were ever fought in history were fought, basically, in parts of Ukraine.

So tanks are very important, both to the defence and the offence, and upgraded modern tanks, the training that goes with it, the ability to use them, will be fundamental to Ukrainian success."