Poland Can Transfer F-16 Fighters to Kiev Only in Coordination With NATO: Prime Minister

WARSAW (Sputnik) - Poland can hand over its F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine only in coordination with NATO, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Monday.

"As it was a few months ago in the context of the MiGs, any other air force will be disposed and likely transferred in coordination with NATO countries. We will act in full coordination here," Morawiecki told reporters, answering whether Poland is ready to transfer its F-16 fighters to Ukraine.

On Sunday, the chairman of the Munich Security Conference, Christoph Heusgen, spoke in favor of sending fighter jets to Ukraine, in particular, US-made F-16 fighters or Soviet-made fighters from the old stocks of the German Democratic Republic.

Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after Western countries announced their intention to supply Ukraine with tanks, called on NATO countries to unlock the supply of long-range missiles and military aircraft to Kiev.

On March 8, 2022, the Polish Foreign Ministry said it was ready to transfer its MiG-29 fighters to the Ramstein air base in Germany and give them at the disposal of the US government. Morawiecki said Warsaw was not ready to independently supply Ukraine with MiG-29 fighters. On March 9, US Defense Department Press Secretary John Kirby said the US administration assessed the transfer of MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine as "high risk."

Russia started the special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. In April, Moscow sent a note to NATO member states condemning their military assistance to Kiev amid the conflict. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that providing Ukraine with weapons did not contribute to the success of peace negotiations.