Berlin [Germany], April 14: The German government approved within hours a Polish request on Thursday to deliver five Soviet-designed MiG-29 fighter jets from old East German stocks to Ukraine.
The rapid approval came on a day when heavy fighting over the east Ukrainian city of Bakhmut intensified, and there was a report of serious communications problems Russian officials were having in talking about the war with people at home.
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius welcomed the decision on the fighter planes in a statement: "This shows Germany can be relied on!" The aircraft in question was given to Poland by Germany in 2003. The Bundeswehr had taken them over from former stocks of East Germany's National People's Army. had applied for the approval earlier on Thursday. Pistorius, who was inspecting German troops in Gao, Mali, said on the sidelines that the approval was to come the same day. At the time, he did not reveal his position on the exports, though he is known to be a strong supporter of Ukraine. Poland announced in March that it would deliver the MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, and Polish President Andrzej Duda recently confirmed that eight MiG-29s had already been delivered.
Initially, however, these jets were not being sourced from former East German stocks. Now, a letter from the Polish government to Germany shows this is set to change. Duda's security adviser, Jacek Siewiera, said Poland still had about a dozen of the 22 MiG-29 fighter jets Germany had sent Poland in 2003. If Poland were to be allowed to send German-made jets, it would allow more supplies to flow to Ukraine. Six more MiG-29s from Polish stocks are currently being prepared for delivery, Duda said recently. Ukraine has been calling for fighter jets for several months as it seeks to fend off Moscow's attacks and ahead of a widely expected offensive to try and retake land seized by Russia.
Meanwhile, heavy fighting is continuing in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, both Russian and Ukrainian spokespeople said. Wagner Group mercenaries are engaging in "high-intensity fighting to drive the enemy from the central parts of Artemovsk city," Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said, using the Soviet-era name for the city.
Regular Russian airborne troops are blocking routes into the city used by Ukrainian forces, but Wagner Group head Yevgeny Prigozhin acknowledged that it was too soon to speak of complete encirclement of the city.
Source: Qatar Tribune