The issue of Russian-made MiG-29 warplanes, which came to the agenda with Ukraine’s request for fighter jets, brought Poland and the USA face to face. Warsaw’s offer to deliver the planes to the US base in Germany was not accepted by the White House.
So much so that Washington announced that this offer was made without consulting them.
Victoria Nuland, a senior in the Biden administration, said Poland’s exit came as a “surprise” to them.
The USA’s plan was to transfer the planes to Poland’s neighbor Ukraine and to fill the fighter jet deficit that would arise in Poland.
In a statement from the Pentagon, the proposal was rejected on the grounds that it was not “practicable”.
In a statement, spokesman John Kirby said, “The jets are flying from the US-NATO base in Germany to the Ukrainian airspace, which is the battlefield against Russia.
take-off poses serious security concerns for the NATO alliance.
In the continuation of his statement, Kirby said that they will continue to work with Poland to overcome logistical problems.
Speaking to the BBC, military relations analyst Brandon Kearney argued that it would be best for Ukrainian pilots to cross over to Poland and bring the planes.
Developed in response to F-16s
The BBC’s Warsaw correspondent, Adam Easton, states that the Polish government stopped sending these jets directly to Ukraine because they were afraid of Russia’s reaction.
It is also evaluated that Moscow may see such a step as a direct provocation.
Polish officials explain that they want to take military decisions under the umbrella of NATO.
BBC’s Warsaw correspondent Easton evaluates with this statement that Poland threw the ball back into the US court.
Poland’s offer envisaged the delivery of warplanes to Ramstein Air Base, a US-NATO base in Germany, to be sent to Ukraine.
Twin-engine MiG-29s were developed during the Cold War in response to US-made F-16s.