President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky visited neighboring Poland today and thanked it for the “historic” assistance it is providing to his country, emphasizing that Warsaw should be a key partner in efforts to rebuild Ukraine after the end of the war with Russia.

Warsaw is one of Kyiv’s closest allies and has played a key role in persuading reluctant countries to supply Ukraine with heavy weapons. Today, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that “in the future” his country could transfer all of its Soviet-made MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine. Poland has already delivered eight MiG-29s and will soon send six more to Kyiv.

At a press conference between the two leaders, Duda said that the delivery of all MiG-29s (about 30 in total) would depend on an “agreement between Poland’s allies” in NATO. He explained that a green light was needed from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, since the MiG-29s that remain in his country’s possession have been adapted “to NATO standards”, mainly in terms of communications systems and their ability to perform reconnaissance flights. in NATO airspace.

Earlier, Duda awarded Zelensky with the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest award.

“You supported us and we are grateful. I believe that these are historical relations, a historical result and a historical strength between our countries,” Zelensky said, receiving the award.

Duda looked optimistic that Ukraine emerge victorious in the war with Russia. “We have no doubt that your leadership, combined with the heroism of the Ukrainian soldiers, saved Ukraine. We have no doubt that your leadership is saving Europe from the cataclysm of Russian imperialism,” he said.

Zelensky is due to arrive today at the economic forum. He invited Polish businessmen to visit Ukraine before the end of the war in order to secure a better position in the Ukrainian market and in efforts to rebuild his country.

Referring to the situation in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, he acknowledged that it was difficult, noting that “appropriate decisions” would be made if Ukrainian soldiers risked being surrounded by Russian troops. “The most important thing for me is not to lose our soldiers,” he stressed.

In addition to the MiG-29, Ukraine is also asking its Western allies to provide it with American F-16 fighter jets, but Duda’s foreign policy adviser Marcin Printaks said Poland would not make such a decision anytime soon. “F-16s protect the Polish skies. At this stage, there is no such solution,” he stressed.

The Poles are overwhelmingly on the side of the Ukrainians in this war. An Ipsos poll showed that more than 8 out of 10 (82%) believe that NATO and EU member countries should support Ukraine until victory.

However, Zelensky’s visit to Poland comes at a time when Farmers’ dissatisfaction is growing as the import of Ukrainian grain leads to lower prices in many countries of Eastern Europe.. The prime ministers of five eastern EU countries, in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, said they may have to restore tariffs on Ukrainian agricultural products if other means fail to stop the massive imports of products that are pushing low prices on European markets.

Polish Minister of Agriculture Henryk Kowalczyk resigned because of this crisis.

Source: APE-MPE-AFP-Reuters