Poland may transfer MiG-29 aircraft to Ukraine in January-February
Warsaw may transfer the rest of its MiG-29s to Kyiv in January-February next year. They will strengthen Ukraine's air defense, in particular, they will enable Ukraine to shoot down Russian missiles and attack Russian missile carriers and guided missiles.
This was stated in a comment to a Ukrinform correspondent by Polish expert and former Minister of National Defense of Poland Janusz Onyszkiewicz.
“I think the decision has already been made. The actual transfer of the aircraft will take place in January-February, as it requires technical and practical preparation,” Onyszkiewicz emphasized, noting that we are talking about approximately one squadron of this type of aircraft [12-16 aircraft].
According to him, technical issues remain to be resolved, namely what kind of technology Poland would like to receive from Ukraine in exchange.
The former Minister of Defense of the Republic of Poland emphasized that Ukraine “is at the highest global level in terms of mastering drone technology, and this has all been proven in combat.”
"In this regard, it is extremely valuable for Poland to gain such experience. The same applies to missile technology, as Poland wants to deploy medium- and long-range missiles, not to mention the implementation of a space program. Ukraine has a lot to offer, and I hope that everything will end quickly and move on to the implementation stage," Onyszkiewicz emphasized.
The Polish expert also stressed that the transfer of Polish aircraft to Ukraine will be of significant importance for the Ukrainian air defense system.
“This will not mean a very significant change in the situation, but the Ukrainian forces will feel the impact of these additional aircraft. MiGs are capable of shooting down enemy missiles, and they can also counter the use of Russian aircraft that strike Ukraine with missiles and guided bombs,” the expert stressed.
As Onyszkiewicz noted, Russia's fleet of fifth-generation aircraft is shrinking as Ukrainian forces are successfully destroying them. Therefore, Russia is increasingly using its older, fourth-generation aircraft (MiG-29, MiG-35 – ed.), in particular for launching missiles and guided bombs.
“Intercepting Russian aircraft that can carry such weapons is a very important issue for Ukraine. This could significantly strengthen Ukraine's air defense,” the Polish expert stressed.
As reported by the agency, the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced yesterday that Poland plans to transfer the rest of its MiG-29 aircraft, which are being decommissioned, to Ukraine in exchange for technology related to the production of UAVs and missiles.
According to Polish media reports, as of today, the Polish army still has 14 MiG-29 aircraft of several types in service. In 2025, they continued to carry out combat duty. In particular, on October 28, 30, and 31 of this year, Polish MiG-29 fighters successfully intercepted Russian Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft in the Baltic Sea.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, while talking to journalists from several media outlets in Warsaw, said that Ukraine is in dire need of Polish weapons on the battlefield, in particular the Piorun MANPADS, Krab self-propelled guns, and MiG-29s.
In an interview with Ukrinform, Piotr Lukasiewicz, Poland's chargé d'affaires in Ukraine, said that Poland would transfer the rest of its MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine once it had “filled the gaps” created by the transfer of these aircraft to Kyiv.
At the end of last year, the Office of the President of Poland announced that, following the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Poland had provided Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees with military, material, and humanitarian aid amounting to almost 5% of its GDP, the highest proportion in the world relative to GDP. The military equipment transferred included 320 tanks, 250 infantry fighting vehicles, and 14 MiG-29 aircraft.
Photo: Wojtek Mazurkiewic