Poland Offers to Transfer All MiG29 Fighters to Ukraine Through U.S. Airbase

US media reported on March 9 that the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed it will deploy all of its MiG-29 fighters to the Ramstein Air Base in Germany and puts them at the disposal of the United States and urges other NATO members that own this type of fighter to do the same. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, only a few former Warsaw Pact member states currently own MiG-29 fighter jets. Poland has twenty-eight, most of which were bought from Germany for a nominal payment of one euro about 20 years ago. There are fourteen such fighters in Slovakia and eleven in Bulgaria.

US Secretary of State Blinken once said during his visit to Moldova on March 6 that if Poland decides to provide fighter jets to Ukraine, the United States will consider providing fighter jets to Poland as well. However, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said hours later that the move to send aircraft from a German base to the disputed Ukrainian airspace might be interpreted by Russia as a signal for NATO to enter the war.

Ukrainian President Zelensky had a video call with members of Congress from both parties of the United States on March 5. After the call, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that Zelensky called on Eastern European countries to participate in providing Russian-made fighter jets because such aircraft are the ones commonly used by Ukrainians when they are trained.