A growing number of Republican and Democratic lawmakers are pushing for the Biden administration to fill Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's request for fighter jets, even if they don't think it would make a huge difference, The Hill reports.
"I think the Pentagon makes a very strong argument that they're not that useful. But Ukraine wants them," Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., told the news outlet two days after Zelenskyy pleaded for more help in Ukraine's fight against Russia. "If it's a suicide mission, there are many Ukrainians engaging in very high-risk missions. These pilots know exactly what they're getting into."
"What Biden needs to do is provide them the MiGs so they can create their own no-fly zone," said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. "All of the slowness to action has made this whole situation worse."
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, is also pushing for the transfer of MiG-29s, a twin-engine jet fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union.
"There's a lot of debate on the merits. I think symbolically, it would mean a lot to Zelenskyy," he said. "Symbolically, it would mean a lot for the people [of Ukraine]."
Leaders in Warsaw last week offered to transfer 28 Polish fighters to Ukraine, but President Joe Biden rejected the idea as risking wider war with nuclear-armed Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"It's a very difficult balance. We want to help Ukraine in every way we can without going to war with Russia and starting World War III and risking a nuclear conflict," said Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash.
"Ukraine has jet fighters now; they're not using them. In fact, all they're doing is moving them around to make sure they don't get taken out," he added.
"And the MiG-29 is, as I understand it, an early fourth-generation fighter that would not fare well — it wouldn't survive against the SU-35, which the Russians have, and it wouldn't survive against the surface-to-air missiles that Russia has in Ukraine.
"It would not be a particularly effective platform, and it would have some risk of escalating the conflict," he continued. "Do the math, it's not the right decision to make at this point."
According to U.S. military officials, Russians have been flying an average of about 200 sorties — or aircraft missions – a day compared to just five or 10 by the Ukrainians.
Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Md., told The Hill that if Ukraine believes that MiGs are going to assist them in their efforts to prevent Russia from dominating the skies, "I think we should find a way to make it happen.
"They want it; they want it now. I would suggest we do it."
Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., echoed the notion.
"If the country that's defending itself is asking, and they think it could actually be useful, then I think we should transfer the planes," he said.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.