Slovakia, the small Central European member state of NATO and the EU, which inherited from its pro-Soviet past an imposing air fleet of supersonic Mig 29 fighters, is considering ceding them entirely to Ukraine, which has repeatedly asked for help in this field given the control of its airspace by the Russian air force.
Moscow invaded Ukraine on February 24 and since then several NATO countries have shown their willingness to help the tiny Ukrainian air force, Poland in particular.
This Tuesday the Slovak Defense Minister, Jaroslav Nad, together with his British counterpart, Ben Wallace, said: “we can discuss the future” of his country’s 11 Mig-29 fighter jets after they are on the ground, “most likely ” at the end of August.
Slovakia has already negotiated with NATO allies the Czech Republic and Poland to monitor Slovakian airspace since the beginning of September, since giving up the Mig-29s would lose control of the area.
“No decision has been made yet, no discussions are taking place as of now [pero] we are ready to discuss that later,” Nad said.
Wallace, for his part, said Britain was not now considering giving fighter jets to Ukraine, but would offer them to Slovakia to help protect its airspace after it ditched its Migs.
Since the beginning of the invasion, Ukraine has urged Western allies to provide it with fighter jets to challenge Russia’s air superiority.
However, the United States and its allies have been reluctant to give him the planes he is asking for for fear of provoking a response from Moscow, which has warned NATO that supplying Ukraine with warplanes could amount to joining the conflict.
Nad said providing Ukraine with fighter jets would require a broader discussion with allies about its consequences. “But politically, yes, I can tell you that there is a positive attitude to helping the Ukrainians with the Mig-29s.”
Slovakia has signed a deal to buy 14 F-16 fighter jets from the United States to replace its Mig-29s, but the start of delivery has been postponed until 2024.
Slovakia has supplied Ukraine with heavy weapons since the war began. His donations include a Soviet-era S-300 air defense system, military helicopters and thousands of Grad multiple rocket launchers. Self-propelled howitzers have also come his way.
