At the beginning of Russia’s all-out war in 2022, Ukraine asked Poland for MiG-29 fighter jets, but the US blocked the request, former Polish President Andrzej Duda told Polskie Radio in an interview. 

“Ukraine was literally pleading with us for MiGs. It came up constantly in my conversations with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. We turned to our allies to ask if we could transfer the aircraft as a NATO member state, and the Americans blocked it,” Duda said.

He added that during negotiations, the Ukrainian side expressed frustration, since the US did not publicly acknowledge its ban.

“The Ukrainians would come to us with complaints because they heard from the Americans: go talk to the Poles. So it created the impression that it was Poland refusing to provide the jets,” the former Polish president explained.

According to Duda, the US similarly blocked the transfer of tanks and other heavy assault vehicles. However, he emphasized that Poland was ultimately the first country to provide Ukraine with heavy weaponry, which he called “a major contribution to saving Ukraine.”

Earlier, the Norwegian Defense Ministry announced it would send F-35 fighters to Poland to protect NATO’s strategic logistics hub in Rzeszów from potential sabotage and missile strikes.

This year, the US said it planned to redeploy some of its military equipment and personnel from the Polish military airport Jasionka, near Rzeszów, to other locations within Poland.

A Ukrainian MiG-29 fighter jet carried out a precision strike on Russian positions in the Zaporizhzhia direction, targeting a command post for drone operators and a combined ammunition and fuel depot, Ukraine's Air Force reported on June 13.

The Air Force did not disclose the exact location of the strike but thanked international partners for providing the guided munitions used in the attack.

"We thank our partners for their highly accurate and effective 'arguments'," the service wrote.

The MiG-29, a Soviet-designed multirole fighter jet, remains a front-line platform in Ukraine's air force and has been adapted to carry Western-supplied precision-guided weapons.

Zaporizhzhia Oblast, located in southeastern Ukraine, remains one of the war's most contested areas. While the city of Zaporizhzhia is under Ukrainian control, southern parts of the region remain occupied by Russian forces.

Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on May 31 that Russia has intensified offensive operations across several key areas, including Zaporizhzhia, as part of a broader summer push.

Ukrainian forces have continued to conduct airstrikes and sabotage missions to degrade Russian supply lines and disrupt offensive preparations.

Russia preparing strategic reserves for conflicts beyond Ukraine, Ukraine warns

“According to our intelligence, Russia has started to prepare strategic reserves, which indicates plans for combat operations not only in Ukraine,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said

The Kyiv IndependentAnna Fratsyvir