A Russian defense company has offered 15 million rubles ($207,000) cash award for Russian serviceman who will be the first to shoot down American F-16 fighter jet, the state-owned news agency RIA Novosti said Tuesday.
The agency cited FORES Executive Director Ilya Potanin.
“The incentive will be for the destruction of F-15 and F-16 combat aircraft. The reward for the former will be 15 million rubles,” Potanin said in his Telegram channel.
According to him, some servicemen received a cash reward for destroying NATO tanks in the Avdiivka sector — 500,000 rubles each for approximately 17 hits on "Abrams" and "Leopards."
Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stated that his country and its allies were sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine "right now," with delivery expected in Kyiv this summer.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the U.S. and its NATO allies are creating risks of a direct armed clash with Russia, which "could lead to catastrophic consequences."
According to him, Russia considers Kyiv possessing F-16 fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear weapons as a threat from the West in the nuclear realm.
