Poland says the transfer of its remaining MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine is on hold until a bilateral agreement for the transfer of Ukrainian drone technology is finalized.
Five months after Poland confirmed its intention to transfer its remaining 14 MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter jets to Ukraine, the country has confirmed that the plan is still on hold. In fact, Warsaw conditioned the donation on the conclusion of a drone technology transfer agreement, which is still pending.
Poland’s Deputy Minister of Defense Cezary Tomczyk said: radiojet, According to TVP WorldThe transfer has not taken place because the deal has not been finalized yet. The agreement allows Poland to receive Ukrainian UAV technology that Kiev developed and used successfully against Russia during the war.
“We did not transfer MiGs to Ukraine,” Tomczyk said. “We have reached an agreement with the Ukrainian side on technology transfer. If this issue is agreed, the fighter issue will be successfully concluded.”
Polish defense observers also supported their government, saying their Ukrainian counterparts should also reciprocate defense resources for mutually beneficial military cooperation. This exchange between the two countries is not new, as technology transfer was a condition agreed upon from the beginning of the MiG-29 transfer.
It should be noted that Poland has already transferred a number of MiG-29s in the past, as confirmed by former Minister of Defense Mariusz Błaszczak. In fact, Poland had transferred a total of 10 MiG-29s to Ukraine by May 2023, increasing to 14 by the end of the year.
Poland suspends MiGs against Ukraine. Deputy Minister of Defense Cezary Tomczyk confirmed that the current government has not transferred any MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Despite previous announcements and disputes with the Presidential Palace, the plane is still here. The previous conditions were… pic.twitter.com/aMke2rVfkr
— Service in Action (@Sluzby_w_akcji) June 15, 2026
No drone technology, no MiG-29
TVP World “Solidarity must be a two-way relationship. Ukrainians are the best in the field of drones among all the countries with which we have positive relations.”
republic “Talk between Poland and Ukraine is ongoing. Poland has made it clear that as we build our own drone capabilities, we also want to be able to use Ukraine’s capabilities. Of course, once this issue is finalized, we will transfer the equipment to Ukraine. Nothing has changed in this matter. The matter is not over yet.”
The immediate reason for Ukraine’s delay in the drone technology transfer agreement is unclear at this time. However, according to a Ukrainian report dated December 12, 2025, Kiev’s ambassador to Warsaw, Vasyl Bodnar, confirmed that the two countries are working to send combat-tested Ukrainian drone technology to Poland in exchange for MiG-29s.
Tomczyk also said Poland was working on transferring six to eight MiG-29s from its remaining 14 aircraft. Poland initially stated that due to the imminent arrival of the F-35A (the first three will be delivered to the country in May 2025) and the FA-50PL, the Polish Air Force will not face a capability gap after the fighter transfer to sufficiently complement the MiG-29’s role.
For Ukraine, the MiG-29 can be put into operation immediately without any new training for pilots and ground crews, drawing on years of experience operating Soviet-era jets. According to World Air Force 2026 According to the report, Ukraine operates a total of 45 MiG-29s, including former Polish-made jets and former Slovakian jets.
In this quiet and unique moment I created… through the harmony of light and space, I was able to see not only aviation technology… but also the subtle beauty of a fleeting moment ✨✈️ #gawronsky #MiG29 #AviationPhotography #PolishAirForce pic.twitter.com/7uZDbxHtIU
— gawronsky.com (@m_gawronski) December 2, 2025
Poland’s remaining 14 MiG-29s are divided into 11 single-seat planes and 3 two-seat planes. Until the start of the war in February 2022, the Polish Air Force (PolAF) operated 28 aircraft.
After the transfer, the aircraft will fly alongside Ukraine’s F-16AM, Mirage 2000-5F, Su-24 Fencers, Su-25 and Su-27. Kiev has also signed a letter of intent with France to potentially buy up to 100 Dassault Rafale jets and signed a deal with Sweden to buy 36 Saab JAS39 Gripens.
Ukrainian drone technology
Due to the ongoing war, Poland has seen incursions by Russian drones, which prompted NATO to launch the Operation Eastern Sentry mission. With the alliance’s participation, Britain’s Eurofighter Typhoon, Romania’s F-16, and France’s Rafale fighter jets have recently been scrambled to deal with a number of unidentified drones, which have also forced fighter jets to open fire.
As Poland continues to modernize its military, there is also a focus on anti-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) defense. Ukraine is currently considered the best expert in this field due to the experience it has accumulated since 2022.
🇫🇷 At Eurosatory 2026 in Paris, Ukrainian defense companies and defense companies demonstrated the latest Ukrainian-made long-range weapons.
Among the products presented:
– UAV-290 rocket UAV;
– ST-1000 SEA TRIDENT underwater drone;
– FP-7 and FP-9 ballistics… pic.twitter.com/naqEXkRN4U— Angelica Shalagina🇺🇦 (@angelshalagina) June 15, 2026
Ukraine’s response to the Russian invasion has resulted in a variety of cost-effective drones that can be used for a variety of military purposes. This includes counter-drone systems such as interceptor UAVs. Small first-person battlefield attack drone; tactical surveillance drones and ‘bomber’ drones; It is a simple long-range attack UAV that has attacked Russian air force bases, radar stations and energy infrastructure.
The country also has a reasonably effective fleet of unmanned surface ships (USVs) that attack Russian Black Sea Fleet (VSF) ships and even shoot down Russian fighter jets with repurposed air-to-air missiles. These unmanned systems were developed through Russia’s banned standoff attacks and sophisticated electronic warfare jamming against Ukraine’s defense industry.
These efforts have allowed Kiev to gain a wealth of experience in the areas of engineering, electromagnetic spectrum and tactics of drone warfare. Many countries are now looking at the progress Ukraine has made in this field, learning from its experience, and purchasing drones.
These examples emerged after Iran’s retaliatory attacks on U.S. targets in its neighboring country during the recent Middle East war. This led local forces to seek the help of Ukrainian advisors to procure some Ukrainian counter-drone systems and improve their defense measures.
