The Slovak Defense Ministry said on Monday that Slovakia had given Ukraine the last nine of the 13 MiG-29 fighter jets from the Soviet Union that it had promised.
The ministry said that the warplanes had to be moved by land because it was safer. This was a “complicated logistics operation.” On March 23, Ukrainian pilots flew the first four from Slovakia to Ukraine.
“We are doing the right thing,” Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad said in a statement. On March 17, the Slovak government approved a plan to give Ukraine all of its Soviet-era MiG-29 planes. This made Slovakia the second NATO member to answer Ukraine’s request for warplanes to help fight against Russia’s invasion.
Slovakia stopped flying its MiGs in the summer because it didn’t have enough extra parts or people who knew how to fix them. Both Poland and the Czech Republic are members of NATO and stepped in to keep an eye on Slovak air space.
Most likely, the MiG-29s won’t get new planes for another year. Slovakia had previously agreed to buy 14 US F-16 Block 70/72 fighter jets, but delivery was pushed back two years, so the first plane won’t arrive until early 2024.
As payment for the fighter jets that were given to Ukraine by the US, Slovakia has been offered 12 new military helicopters.
Under the deal, Slovakia would pay USD 340 million for the Bell AH-1Z attack helicopters, which are worth about USD 1 billion. The other USD 660 million would be paid for by US defense aid to other countries.
