FACT CHECK: Is The U.S. And U.K. Sending Attack Helicopters To Ukraine?
A video shared on Facebook claims the U.S. and the U.K. are sending attack helicopters to Ukraine.
Verdict: False
There is no evidence for this claim. The U.K. Defense Ministry denied the claim in January.
Fact Check:
U.S. officials believe a leaked document regarding the current status of the Ukraine war, including burn rate for HIMARS rockets and casualty figures, is legitimate, according to NBC News. The Department of Justice is actively investigating the source of the leak, the outlet reported.
The Facebook video, viewed more than 36,000 times, claims the U.K and U.S. sent 24 attack helicopters to Ukraine. The video itself claims the U.K. sent Apache helicopters to Ukraine.
However, there is no evidence for this claim. If the U.K. or the U.S. had sent attack helicopters to Ukraine, media outlets would have covered it, yet none have. The U.K. Defense Ministry, Ukrainian Defense Ministry, and the Pentagon have not released statements indicating that attack helicopters were sent to Ukraine.
A spokesman for the U.K Defense Ministry told Newsweek in January 2023 that no Apache helicopters have been handed over to Ukraine. Check Your Fact did not find any evidence that the U.K. has recently provided attack helicopters to Ukraine.
The U.K. provided Sea King search and rescue helicopters to Ukraine in November 2022, according to BBC News. The U.S. provided Soviet-era Mi-17 helicopters to Ukraine starting in April, the Washington Post reported. (RELATED: Does This Image Show Russian Helicopters Over A Ukrainian Town?)
Oryx, a defense analysis website, maintains a list of heavy weaponry sent to Ukraine. While the list shows that countries, such as the Czech Republic, have sent Soviet-era Mi-24 attack helicopters to Ukraine, it does not show any Western-made attack helicopters being sent to Ukraine or any attack helicopters from the U.S. or U.K.
Check Your Fact reached out to the U.K Defense Ministry and the Pentagon for comment and will update this article if responses are provided.