Here's what I'm not getting, why doesn't Poland just hand them over to Ukrainian pilots at Polish bases?
Poland is a NATO country. Any threat of retaliation from Russia is an empty threat, or an open invitation to WW3. Why not push back harder calling Putin's bluff?
If a NATO nation is an aggressor, then Art.5 doesn’t apply. It could be construed giving fighter jets is an escalation and an aggressive move towards Russia.
Additionally, if Poland transfers 26-29 fighters, they’ve reduced their defensive capability. By trading them to us for some used mid-block F16s, they replenish their losses with a “better” aircraft.
Now, Poland trades us Mig29s to flesh out their preexisting move to F16s. We already have a pile of Mig29s in our inventory, so fuck it, give the Polish birds to Ukraine… what’s Russia going to do, declare war in us now? Putin knows, and now the world knows, that we’d mop the floor with their military, but Poland standing on its own wouldn’t do so hot.
Their equipment is poorly maintained, and looks like they’ve been making shit work for years. Even their first line T90s, the cream of their tank crop, is rolling around on worn-out tracks (basically bald tires). They are shipping down civilian vehicles to backfill losses… where is their reserve equipment?!?
I feel the only move Russia has is to throw up the white flag and GTFO.