Polish President Andrzej Duda announced the transfer of four MiG-29s to Ukraine in the coming days.
Ukraine has long asked its Western allies for fighter jets. After his tour of European countries in February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said there was good news on fighter jets, but for now he did not want to “prepare the Russian Federation”. But so far no one has delivered planes to us. However, Ukraine seems to be close at the moment.
As always, the first Poland
Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Thursday that Warsaw will hand over the first four MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine in the coming days. Thus, Poland will be the first NATO member country to transfer combat aircraft to Ukraine.
According to Duda, this decision was made at the level of state bodies. Today, Warsaw has “a dozen of these MiGs” – they were received back in the early 90s from the army of the GDR. The president did not specify how many fighters Poland will provide for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“We are transferring four aircraft to Ukraine in full order in the next few days. The rest of the planes are being serviced and prepared. Their place will be taken by new FA-50 aircraft from South Korea, which first is expected by the end of the year. And then squadrons of F-35 aircraft, “said Duda.
Earlier, Duda said that Poland would give Ukraine all its MiG-29s. According to data from open sources, the Polish Air Force has 22 such aircraft.
Slovakia next?
Slovakia is considering giving Ukraine 10 of its 11 MiG-29 aircraft that were withdrawn from service last year. On March 15, the government began to consider the issue, but so far no decisions have been made unofficially.
Earlier, the Slovak Defense Ministry said that some of the fighters, due to their technical condition, will only be used for spare parts if they are sent to Ukraine.
F-16 needed
The Air Force of Ukraine believes that providing the country with modernized Soviet MiG-29 fighters will be a serious help, but it is unlikely to lead to any global changes on the front.
“Yes, of course, this is a serious help. This is an increase in the capabilities of our tactical aviation. But with that radar (radar) and the weapons that cooperate with that radar, they remained what they were,” said Yuri Ignat, spokesman for the Air Force.
According to him, to get air superiority and strikes on ground targets, Ukraine needs a multi-purpose modern Western aircraft like the F-16.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Thursday, commenting on Poland’s decision to transfer the MiG-29 to Kyiv, said that Western countries are now discussing the possibility of providing Ukraine with modern fighters.
“Fighters from Ukraine have been a request for a long time and this is what we are discussing in the circle of allied countries. allies of the group,” he said.
Frederiksen later clarified that Denmark is also considering sending its aircraft to Ukraine.
“Yes, we are considering many different aspects and are in a very, very close conversation with our allies on this issue. I cannot reveal more,” the Danish prime minister said.
They also support the transfer of Danish F-16 fighters to Ukraine in the country’s parliament. In particular, Rasmus Yarlov, spokesman for the defense of the Conservative Party, called them “a very important weapon for Ukraine to defend its state.”
The Danish Air Force now uses F-16 fighters, but from autumn 2023 they will start replacing them with the more modern F-35.
But the United States still refused to transfer the F-16 to Ukraine.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.