Polish fighter jets for Kyiv in first offer by Nato nation
Warsaw confirms move as US releases video of drone clash with Russian planes that led to Black Sea crash
UKRAINE is set to receive its first aircraft from a Nato member after Poland said it would soon send four Soviet-era MIG-29 fighter jets.
Kyiv has long sought combat aircraft from its Western allies, but governments have so far baulked at the idea because of the risk of escalation from Russia.
“In the coming days, we are handing over four aircraft in full working order,” Andrzej Duda, Poland’s president, said yesterday.
“The rest are being serviced, prepared and will probably be handed over successively,” he added.
The announcement was made as the United States released video footage that officials claimed showed a mid-air sparring session between two Russian warplanes and its military surveillance drone above the Black Sea.
The American MQ-9 Reaper plummeted into international waters southwest of occupied Crimea on Tuesday after it collided with a Sukhoi SU-27 fighter jet, the first direct incident between the US and Russia since the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Shot from the camera of the MQ-9 Reaper, the Russian warplane is seen dumping fuel as it intercepts the drone.
The video is eventually disrupted at the moment the Russian fighter collides with the US drone, damaging the propeller and ultimately forcing its operator to bring it down in the Black Sea.
CNN reported yesterday that Russian salvage teams had reached what is believed to be the crash site.
As the MQ-9 Reaper plummeted toward the sea its operators remotely wiped the drone’s software, limiting any risk of secret materials falling into enemy hands, US officials added.
In public, US military officials have stressed the aircraft may never be found because of the location it crashed in.
Mr Duda’s pledge made Poland the first Nato nation to answer Ukraine’s long-held demand for its Western allies to bolster its air force.
Andriy Yermak, chief of staff for Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, celebrated Poland’s announcement with a social media post with four emojis depicting aircraft.
Poland had previously said it would be willing to send Soviet-era fighters, but only as part of a coalition of Western governments.
Earlier this week, a Polish government spokesman said other unnamed countries had pledged Migs to Ukraine.
Mr Duda said Poland had as many as 20 MIG-29 jets that could be donated to Kyiv, while Slovakia has publicly announced it could send some of its 11 Soviet-era fighters.
While Ukraine has asked for Nato- standard jets, such as the American F-16, Migs are seen as more viable options because their pilots are trained to operate the aircraft and the logistical hubs are already in place.
Last month, Britain pledged to train Ukrainian pilots on Nato-standard equipment, but it will be months before they can fly western fighters.
It is likely that Britain has agreed to deploy RAF Typhoons to Eastern countries to provide additional air defences to cover for any immediate donations of Soviet-era aircraft to Ukraine.
Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, said the “UK continued to work closely with allies to ensure Ukraine received the defensive equipment it needed” in a telephone call yesterday with President Zelensky.
Meanwhile, a huge fire broke out at an FSB security building in southern Russia, killing at least one person.
Flames engulfed the building in Rostov-on-don, 80 miles from Russianheld territory in Ukraine, after what local media reported as an explosion at an ammunition depot belonging to Russia’s notorious security agency.
On the battlefield, Kyiv’s forces yesterday showed no signs of withdrawing from the city of Bakhmut, according to Denis Pushilin, the Kremlin-appointed leader of the Donetsk region.
The Russian attempt to seize the saltmining town has reportedly cost almost 1,000 men for every kilometre gained.