Poland says it will send fighter jets to Ukraine in 'coming days'

Poland's president said Thursday that his country plans to give Ukraine around a dozen MiG-29 fighter jets, which would make it the first NATO member to fulfil the Ukrainian government's increasingly urgent requests for warplanes.

President Andrzej Duda said Poland would hand over four of the Soviet-made warplanes "within the next few days" and that the rest needed servicing and would be supplied later. The Polish word he used to describe the total number can mean between 11 and 19.

One of Ukraine's staunchest supporters, Warsaw has taken a leading role in persuading sometimes hesitant allies to provide Kyiv with heavy weaponry. It has said that any transfer of jets would be as part of a coalition.

"Firstly, literally within the next few days, we will hand over, as far as I remember, four aircraft to Ukraine in full working order," Duda told a news conference.

"The rest are being prepared, serviced."

On Tuesday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that deliveries could be made in four to six weeks.

Germany's government appeared to have been caught off guard by Duda's announcement.

"So far, everyone has agreed that it's not the time to send fighter jets," German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters. "I don't have any confirmation from Poland yet that this has happened."

Poland's ambassador to Canada told Power and Politics host David Cochrane that Poland is hoping other NATO countries will decide to follow Poland's lead and send jets.

"We definitely hope that this will be — and is — an element of persuasion," said Witold Dzielski. "It's ether we sit back and observe as Ukrainians are dying and Ukraine is being destroyed … or we simply provide a little bit of additional help." 

The White House called Poland's move a sovereign decision and lauded the Poles for continuing to "punch above their weight" in assisting Kyiv. But the U.S. administration stressed that Poland's efforts would have no bearing on President Joe Biden, who has resisted calls to provide U.S. F-16s to Ukraine.

"There's no change in our view with respect to fighter aircraft at this time," White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said. "That is our sovereign decision. That is where we are, other nations can speak to their own" decisions.

NATO allies in the former communist east such as Poland and Slovakia have been particularly vocal supporters of Kyiv since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

Slovakia has also been considering whether to send MiG-29s to Ukraine but has yet to reach a decision.