- United States is working with Poland to supply MiG-29 fighter jets that can be used by Ukrainian Air Force
- In return, Poland has asked for F-16 fighter jets to be given to the country as backup in exchange for the MiGs
- Polish government wary of angering Russian President Vladimir Putin, keen for it not to be seen as a NATO act
- Ukrainian air force require Russian fighter aircraft because those are the models they have been trained on
- Finer details are still to be worked out including how Ukrainian fighter pilots would obtain the Polish jets
- Ukraine’s president has lashed out at NATO powers for refusing to impose a no-fly zone over his country
- NATO rejected calls, saying a no-fly zone could provoke widespread war in Europe with nuclear-armed Russia
- President Joe Biden has called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss ongoing efforts to impose economic costs on Russia and to speed U.S. military, humanitarian and economic assistance to Ukraine
The US is working with Poland in order to orchestrate a deal that would allow Polish fighter jets to be flown by pilots from the Ukrainian Air Force in order to combat Russia’s air superiority.
The deal would see Ukraine take Poland’s 28 Russian-made MiG-29 warplanes, which would in turn be replaced by a fresh set of F-16’s by the United States.
The Polish Air Force operates both types of fighter aircraft in its combat operations.
Ukraine fears attack from the air may soon be the go-to choice of tactics by Russia after their ground offensive appears to be making far slower progress than the Kremlin had anticipated.
The White House is now working out the practicalities of carrying out such a deal, including the crucial question of how the Ukrainians would physically be able to get their hands on the planes.
‘There are a number of challenging practical questions, including how the planes could actually be transferred from Poland to Ukraine.
‘We are also working on the capabilities we could provide to backfill Poland if it decided to transfer planes to Ukraine,’ a White House spokesperson said to the Financial Times.
Poland, which is a member of NATO, would need to play the situation delicately and not be seen to overtly supporting the war unilaterally.
The Polish government is concerned Russian President Vladimir Putin would see the Ukrainian’s being given warplanes as a direct escalation or even NATO interference.
On Saturday, Putin said he would see any institution of a no-fly zone by a third party as ‘participation in the armed conflict’.
‘Poland is not in a state of war with Russia, but it is not an impartial country, because it supports Ukraine as the victim of aggression. It considers, however, that all military matters must be a decision of Nato as a whole,’ a Polish official said.
Polish president Andrzej Duda has previously brushed aside the entire idea noting that supplying the planes would be seen as essentially interfering in the conflict.