{"id":2390,"date":"2026-06-16T13:13:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T13:13:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/delayed-drone-technology-deal-puts-polish-mig-29-transfer-to-ukraine-on-hold\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T13:13:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T13:13:08","slug":"delayed-drone-technology-deal-puts-polish-mig-29-transfer-to-ukraine-on-hold","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/delayed-drone-technology-deal-puts-polish-mig-29-transfer-to-ukraine-on-hold\/","title":{"rendered":"Delayed Drone Technology Deal Puts Polish MiG-29 Transfer to Ukraine on Hold"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

Poland says the transfer of its remaining MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine remains on hold pending the finalization of a reciprocal agreement for the transfer of Ukrainian drone technology.<\/h2>\n

Five months after Poland confirmed the will to transfer its remaining 14 MiG-29<\/a> Fulcrum fighters to Ukraine, the country confirmed the plan is still on hold. In fact, Warsaw has conditioned the donation<\/a> on sealing a drone technology transfer agreement, which is still pending.<\/p>\n

Poland\u2019s deputy defense minister Cezary Tomczyk told Radio Zet,<\/em> according to TVP World<\/em><\/a>, that the transfer is yet to take place since the deal has not yet been finalized. The agreement would allow Poland to receive Ukrainian UAV technology that Kyiv successfully developed and employed against Russia during the course of the war.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have not transferred the MiGs to Ukraine,\u201d said Tomczyk. \u201cWe agreed with the Ukrainian side on a transfer of technology. If this matter is agreed, then the issue of the fighters will end successfully.\u201d<\/p>\n

Polish defense observers have also backed their government<\/a>, saying the Ukrainian side too needs to reciprocate with their defense resources for a mutually beneficial military cooperation. This exchange between the two countries is not new, as the transfer of technology was a condition agreed since the beginning for the transfer of the MiG-29s.<\/p>\n

It must be noted that Poland has already transferred a number of MiG-29s in the past, as confirmed<\/a> by former Minister of National Defense Mariusz B\u0142aszczak. In fact, Poland transferred to Ukraine by May 2023 a total of 10 MiG-29s, which increased to 14 by the end of the year.<\/p>\n

\n

Polska wstrzymuje MiG-i dla Ukrainy. Wiceszef Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowej Cezary Tomczyk potwierdzi\u0142, \u017ce obecny rz\u0105d nie przekaza\u0142 Ukrainie my\u015bliwc\u00f3w MiG-29.<\/p>\n

Mimo wcze\u015bniejszych zapowiedzi i spor\u00f3w z Pa\u0142acem Prezydenckim \u2013 samoloty nadal stoj\u0105 u nas. Warunkiem przekazania\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/aMke2rVfkr<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 S\u0142u\u017cby w akcji (@Sluzby_w_akcji) June 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

No drone tech, no MiG-29s<\/strong><\/h3>\n

TVP World<\/em> further quoted Tomczyk, who explained: \u201cA relationship of solidarity must be a two-way relationship. Ukrainians are the best in drones of all the countries with which we have positive relations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rzeczpospolita<\/em><\/a> additionally attributed this statement to Tomczyk: \u201cDialogue between Poland and Ukraine is ongoing. The Poles have made it clear: as we build our own drone capabilities, we would also like to be able to use those Ukrainian capabilities. Of course, we will transfer the equipment to Ukraine if this matter is finalized. Nothing has changed in this matter; the matter has not been finalized.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Poland<\/a>
One of the Polish MiG-29 Fulcrum jets takes off from Minsk Mazowiecki AB. | Source: Jacek Siminski<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Any immediate reason for the Ukrainian side to delay the drone technology transfer agreement remains unclear at this point. However, Ukrainian reports<\/a> from Dec. 12, 2025, quoted Kyiv\u2019s ambassador to Warsaw, Vasyl Bodnar, who confirmed the two countries were working on sending battle-tested Ukrainian drone technology to Poland in exchange for the MiG-29s.<\/p>\n

Tomczyk also revealed that Poland was working on transferring 6 to 8 MiG-29s out of the remaining fleet of 14 aircraft. Poland initially said that the Polish Air Force would not face any capability gaps after transferring the fighters due to the imminent arrival of F-35As \u2013 with the first three delivered in country in May 2025<\/a> \u2013 and FA-50PLs, which would more than make up for the MiG-29\u2019s role.<\/p>\n

For Ukraine, the MiG-29s can be immediately thrown into operations without requiring new training for the pilots and ground crews, given their experience operating the Soviet-era jet for years. According to the World Air Forces 2026<\/em> report, Ukraine operates a total of 45 MiG-29s, which include ex-Polish and ex-Slovakian<\/a> jets.<\/p>\n

\n

W tej spokojnej i niezwykle chwili, kt\u00f3r\u0105 tym razem to\u2026 ja mog\u0142em wykreowa\u0107, gdzie harmonia \u015bwiat\u0142a i przestrzeni pozwala\u0142a dostrzec w lotnictwie nie tylko technik\u0119\u2026 lecz tak\u017ce subtelne pi\u0119kno ulotnych moment\u00f3w \"\u2728\"\"\u2708\"#gawronsky<\/a> #MiG29<\/a> #AviationPhotography<\/a> #PolishAirForce<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/7uZDbxHtIU<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 gawronsky.com (@m_gawronski) December 2, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Poland\u2019s remaining 14 MiG-29s are split into 11 single-seaters and three twin-seat jets. Before the start of the war in February 2022, the Polish Air Force (PolAF) operated 28 airframes.<\/p>\n

Following the transfer, the aircraft will fly together with Ukraine\u2019s fleet of F-16AMs, Mirage 2000-5Fs<\/a>, Su-24 Fencers, Su-25s and Su-27s. Kyiv has also inked a Letter of Intent with France to potentially buy up to 100 Dassault Rafale<\/a> jets, and signed on for 36 Saab JAS39 Gripens<\/a> with Sweden.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ukrainian drone technology<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Due to the ongoing war, Poland has seen Russian drone incursions<\/a>, which triggered the launch of the Operation Eastern Sentry<\/a> mission by NATO. The alliance\u2019s involvement recently saw the scramble of British Eurofighter Typhoons<\/a>, Romanian F-16s<\/a> and French Rafales<\/a> to deal with a number of unidentified drones, which also required the fighters to open fire.<\/p>\n

As Poland continues its ongoing modernization of the military, a focus is also being put on the Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS) defenses. Ukraine is currently considered as the top expert in this sector due to the experience it has collected since 2022.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\ud83c\uddeb\ud83c\uddf7\" In Paris at Eurosatory 2026, the Ukrainian defense industry and defense companies demonstrated the latest long-range weapons of Ukrainian production.<\/p>\n

Among the products presented:
\n\u2013 UAV-290 rocket UAV;
\n\u2013 ST-1000 SEA TRIDENT underwater drone;
\n\u2013 FP-7 and FP-9 ballistic\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/naqEXkRN4U<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Angelica Shalagina\"\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\" (@angelshalagina) June 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s response to the Russian invasion spawned a variety of cost-effective drones for a range of military uses. These include counter-drone systems like interceptor UAVs<\/a>; small first-person view battlefield attack drones; tactical surveillance drones and \u2018bomber\u2019 drones; and simple long-range strike UAVs that have hit Russian air bases<\/a>, radar sites and energy infrastructure.<\/p>\n

The country also has a reasonably effective fleet of Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV) that strike Russian Black Sea Fleet (VSF) ships and even shoot down Russian fighters<\/a> with repurposed air-to-air missiles. These unmanned systems have been developed under prohibitive Russian standoff strikes on the Ukrainian defense industry and sophisticated electronic warfare jamming.<\/p>\n

The effort allowed Kyiv to acquire a wealth of experience in the engineering, electromagnetic spectrum and tactical domains of drone warfare. Many countries are now looking at the progress that Ukraine made in this sector, looking to learn from their experience and even buy their drones.<\/p>\n

A recent instance of this was seen during the war in the Middle East, following the Iranian retaliatory attacks against U.S. targets in the neighboring countries. This led regional militaries to procure some Ukrainian counter-drone systems, as well as requesting the help of Ukrainian advisors to improve the defensive measures.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Poland says the transfer of its remaining MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine remains on hold pending the finalization of a reciprocal agreement for the transfer of Ukrainian drone technology. Five months after Poland confirmed the will to transfer its remaining 14 MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters to Ukraine, the country confirmed the plan is still on hold. In […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2391,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2390","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2390"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2390"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2390"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zephyrsys.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2390"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}