Slovakia to donate 13 MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine: PM
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Slovakia says it will be donating 13 MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, joining Poland as the second NATO member to send the aircraft to Kiev.
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Slovak Air Force MiG-29s fly over an airport during an airshow in Malacky, Slovakia, August 27, 2022 (AP)
Bratislava said Friday that the country would donate 13 MiG-29 warplanes to Ukraine, becoming another NATO member, second only to Poland, to pledge the aircraft to Ukraine in light of the ongoing war.
"We will hand over 13 of our MiG-29 jets to Ukraine," Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger told journalists. Moreover, he revealed that Bratislava would also deliver a Kub air defense system to Kiev.
"We're giving these MiGs to Ukraine so that it can protect civilians against the many bombs that fall on their houses and which are the reason why people are dying in Ukraine," Heger said.
This comes after Polish President Andrzej Duda said Thursday that Warsaw would send four MiG-29 jets to Ukraine within a few days.
"We can safely say that we are also sending MiG jets to Ukraine. We have more than ten of them in stock at the moment," Duda said at a press conference with Czech President Petr Pavel, adding that four fighters will be provided "literally in the coming days."
The West has had Ukraine knocking at its door for months demanding fighter jets. However, the Soviet-made MiG-29 is not at the top of Kiev's wishlist, as it is mainly seeking the US-made F-16s.
"Our steps are fully coordinated with Poland and Ukraine," Heger underlined, highlighting that his government "stands on the right side of history".
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday thanked Slovakia for the "power package of air & air defense weapons, including MiG aircraft."
Kiev, according to the World Air Forces 2023 report by Flight Global released at the end of 2022, has been operating 43 MiG-29s.
In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stressed that the fighter jets given to Ukraine by Poland and Slovakia would be destroyed.
"The supply of this military equipment - as we have repeatedly said - will not change the outcome of the special military operation... Of course, all this equipment will be destroyed," Peskov told journalists.
According to the Slovakian prime minister, Bratislava will receive compensation for the donation from the European Peace Facility, the EU's fund for Ukraine.
The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced last week that a new three-pillar aid plan for Ukraine, which provides for the supply of weapons from the bloc's stockpiles, an increase in the EU's defense production, and the allotment of EU budget funds to speed up defense manufacturing.
The European Peace Facility is a funding mechanism worth 8 billion euros and is expected to fund reimbursements to EU donors and new purchases with 2 billion euros.
Diplomats informed EUobserver that on Friday in Brussels, ambassadors would finalize the agreement so that leaders can announce it at a summit the following week.
Earlier last week, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak announced on March 9 the decision to supply Kiev with a new batch of 10 Leopard 2 tanks.
"We have transferred another 10 Leopard 2A4 tanks to Ukraine," Blaszczak told journalists, noting that other NATO member-states will soon send their tanks to Ukraine, including eight tanks from Canada, eight from Norway, and six from Spain.
