On Tuesday, the Polish government announced that it was ready to deploy its entire fleet of Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets to a US airbase in Germany, giving Washington the option to supply the planes to Ukraine.
The Polish Foreign Ministry said that Poland is “ready to immediately transfer all their MIG-29 planes free of charge to the base in Ramstein and place them at the disposal” of the US government.
The announcement signals that Poland does not want to use its territory to transfer the planes to Ukraine over fears that the move could provoke Russia. US officials said this week that they would backfill Poland’s air force fleet with US-made planes if Warsaw gives its MiG-29s to Ukraine.
“Poland is asking the United States of America to provide it with used aircraft with similar operational capabilities. Poland is ready to immediately agree on the terms of purchase of these machines,” Poland’s Foreign Ministry said.
If the US goes ahead with the plan to give Ukraine the MiG-29s, it would be a significant escalation in Washington’s military support for Kyiv. Whether US pilots fly the planes into Ukraine or Ukrainian pilots fly them from Germany, Russia might view the move as the US directly entering the conflict.
The Barnum & Baily NATO Ro-day-o Show
MIG’s need more than pilots. They need ground crews for maintenance and repairs. They need fuel. They need runways. They need protection against ground-to-air missiles.
So what happens when a US pilot flies a freshly repainted MiG into Ukraine and is immediately shot down, with the pilot captured or possibly killed? If that plane is armed, does it constitute the US entering the war? And what if that pilot is engaged and shoots down a Russian plane? Having US pilots, ground crew, or ANY US support on the ground (or in the air) in Ukraine is a very, very bad idea. Any idiot can see the potential for disaster.
Let’s recap this idiocy. This shows how impossible it is to keep up with what is happening.
First the EU’s Borrell and the US’ Blinken recommended a plan for Eastern European countries to send jets to Ukraine. They refused.
Then Blinken (or someone) came up with the even more ludicrous idea to have Poland send its jets with the US replacing them with F-16s.
Then Poland refused to do that.
Then Poland agreed to do that.
Now the US is telling Poland, “Don’t do that.”
Who the hell is running the Biden administration? It sure as hell ain’t Biden.
I suspect what happened is that the Pentagon put its foot down and said, “Hell, no! That is a bad idea!”
I still think the US intends a war between Russia and NATO – but apparently there are factions fighting it out in Washington. So we don’t know what is going to happen. The only thing we do know is that whoever wants this war is still pushing for it on a daily basis.
Terrible idea from a bunch of warmongering idiots. We need regime change here and now.
The old fool’s approval ratings went UP. We are a sick people.
Poland gets new planes and the US has to deliver the donated planes to Ukraine? Sounds rather asinine on everyone’s part. Although Poland would make out in the deal, I wouldn’t sleep too tight.
US says, “Thank you very much, but no.”
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/08/politics/poland-jets-ukraine-russia/index.html
The US, Poland, the UK, France, the whole crew, they have created or allowed Ukraine to create (which amounts to the same thing) a monster! “Somebody” has to do “something” about Russia’s invasion!!! They just HAVE to!!! Twitter agrees. Youtube agrees. Facebook agrees. The MSM agrees. Corporations in general, knowing where their bread is buttered (mostly in N America and W Europe, not Russia) agree.
So, nobody (in the USA or Poland or elsewehere) wants to be the bad guy or the “cowardly Chamberlain-like appeaser” by saying “no” to whatever cockamamie scheme Zelensky comes up with. Zelensky wants a no fly zone. He wants planes. He wants even more severe sanctions. He wants this, that, and the other. And, well, all of the above actors have decided that Zelensky is Churchill Junior. How can they save face while saying to him, “Actually, Mr. President, Ukraine is not a treaty ally of ours, which you knew all along. We have no obligation to do even the things we are doing, much less do things that might actually risk a shooting war between us and Russia. So, with all due respect, um, yeah, that ain’t happening.” They know it, Zelensky (again, if he has even half a brain) knows it, and the Russians know it; but do Mr and Ms Outraged Western Consumer of Social Media know it?
Hence the Kabuki theater back and forth passing of the buck.