March 28, 2024

MiG-29 for Ukraine – Russia accuses Slovakia of breaching the contract

Russia has accused Slovakia of breaching a contract to deliver Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine. According to a contract concluded in 1997, the machines may not be delivered to another country without Russia’s consent. This was announced by the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation on Friday in Moscow.

The contract is also available on the website of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Moscow spoke of an “unfriendly act” and a violation of Slovakia’s international obligations.

Slovak politics has not yet publicly responded to the Russian allegations, which were previously voiced by the Moscow embassy. Slovakia delivered four planes to Ukraine on Thursday. Another nine to follow.

The Soviet Union delivered the majority of the aircraft to Czechoslovakia in the late 1980s. After the country collapsed, the Czech Republic and Slovakia shared planes. Even in the 1990s, Slovakia received some aircraft from Russia. The Kremlin announced that Ukraine was beginning to acquire old and unnecessary technology with planes from Slovakia and Poland.

Slovakia intends to deliver the remaining nine MiG-29s to Ukraine “within the next few weeks,” according to the Defense Ministry. 3 out of 13 machines are not working, so they are only meant to be taken apart for spare parts. Opposition parties in Slovakia criticized the government’s decision.

See also  Late summer is coming – nearly 30 degrees on the weekend