A new chapter in the history of military equipment supplies is unfolding on the international stage. Ukraine has made an unexpected and possibly revolutionary proposal to Poland: to exchange obsolete Soviet MiG-29 fighters for modern Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
The initiative comes from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's team, although the details of the deal have already become a subject of discussion in Polish government circles. Paulina Sobczyk-Czernecka, Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland, confirmed the receipt of the proposal, calling it "quite specific".
The essence of the proposal: planes for drones
According to information received by the PAP agency, the exchange mechanism looks as follows: Warsaw transfers its MiG-29 fighters to Kyiv, which were previously transferred to Poland from Germany. In return, Ukraine undertakes to provide Poland with a batch of drones. Which specific drone models are being proposed is not yet disclosed, but according to the official, a specific list is already on the table of the Polish leadership.
This proposal is a response to prolonged negotiations. Previously, Warsaw hinted that the fighters might not go to Ukraine and even considered the option of writing them off. Now Ukraine is trying to offer an alternative that could be beneficial for Poland's defense strategy.
Financial terms and Warsaw's position
The key aspect immediately identified by the Polish side is the financial terms. Paulina Sobczyk-Czernecka emphasized that the Polish government categorically does not consider a scenario in which Warsaw would pay for the modernization of these fighters. This means that any costs to bring the aircraft to a combat-ready state must be covered by the Ukrainian side or third parties.
The decision on the fate of the proposal will be made by the Minister of Defense of Poland, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. He will have to analyze how beneficial such a deal is for the country's national security and whether it corresponds to current defense plans.
Why not Bulgaria?
During the discussion, the question arose as to why Poland is not considering selling the fighters to other countries, such as Bulgaria, which also showed interest in buying MiG-29s. The Deputy Minister of Defense explained that negotiations on the acquisition of these aircraft were originally started with Kyiv, and Warsaw is sticking to the original vector of dialogue.
Thus, Ukraine is trying to turn a difficult situation regarding the transfer of equipment into a strategic exchange of resources, offering Poland the technologies of the future in exchange for departing Soviet aviation.
