<p >The Russian Defence Ministry and the state owned United Aircraft Corporation have been reported by multiple sources to be allocating new investments to the MiG-35 fighter program, the future of which has appeared highly uncertain since 2019. The Russian Aerospace Forces received six MiG-35 fighters in 2019, with previously announced orders for several dozen aircraft having failed to materialise. The fighter is a a close derivative of the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/how-capable-is-russias-mig-29-fulcrum-fighter-a-look-at-every-major-variant-and-its-performance" target="_blank">MiG-29</a>, an aircraft developed as a <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/mig-29-vs-su-27-how-the-two-top-soviet-fighters-went-head-to-head-an-east-african-air-war" target="_blank">lighter counterpart</a> to the Su-27&nbsp;which first joined the Soviet Air Force in 1982, with the new aircraft being closely based the heavily modernised MiG-29M design that entered production in 2015. While the Russian Defence Ministry previously showed a limited interest in the MiG-35, it showed no interest in the MiG-29M, which has been built exclusively for export with 60 having been sold to Egypt and Algeria. A primary reason for the lack of interest in these lighter aircraft is that they are perceived to be less cost effective than derivatives of the much larger Su-27, the Su-30, Su-34 and Su-35, which carry radars over twice as large and have over twice the combat radii, while being able to carry significant more ordinance. A longer range and powerful radar is considered particularly vital for fighters to be able to patrol Russia’s vast territory.&nbsp;</p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/05/23/article_68302a32d21d28_22668939.jpeg" title="High Low Combination of Su-27 (top) and MiG-29 Fighters"></p><p >Two primary factors are thought to have influenced the Russian Defence Ministry to allocate funding to the MiG-35 program. The first is the outbreak of war in Ukraine, and resulting rise in tensions with NATO member states which are set to continue to significantly expand military deployments near Russian territory. This has led Russia to expand the s<a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russian-air-force-new-su57-su34" target="_blank">cales of production</a> of its Su-34, Su-35 and Su-57 fighters, as part of efforts to increase the total number of operational fighter squadrons. With the Sokol Aircraft Plant which produces the MiG-29M and MiG-35 having made few contributions to Russia’s military capabilities, the placing of new orders for MiG-35s would allow the country’s fleet of modern fighters to be expanded significantly faster, with the plant able to produce 14 fighters per year, equipping a full new regiment every 21 months. The placing of greater orders would lend momentum to the program, particularly if the fighters are also deployed more actively in the Ukrainian theatre and demonstrate their capabilities in combat, which could in turn facilitate greater foreign interest and greater export orders.&nbsp;</p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/05/23/article_68302ab2da5313_19417504.jpeg" title="Russian Aerospace Forces MiG-35 with Six R-73/74 Visual Range Air-to-Air Missiles"></p><p >A further factor which may influence the Defence Ministry to reinvest in the MiG-35 program is Russia’s growing strategic partnership with North Korea, which is a significant potential client for the fighter. Due to China’s expected unwillingness to violate a UN arms embargo on its smaller neighbour, Russia retains an effective monopoly on possible fighter exports to the country, placing Moscow in a strong position to market the MiG-35. Like the MiG-29M, the MiG-35 has significantly lower maintenance needs and operational costs than Soviet era MiG-29s, but significant commonality in its maintenance infrastructure and training requirements. This could make the fighter optimal to modernise the Korean People’s Army Air Force’s fleet, which has the capacity to<a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russia-realistically-ship-hundreds-mig29-nkorea" target="_blank"> absorb several hundred new fighters</a>, but more realistically could purchase several dozen. Although North Korea is <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/top-five-clients-russia-su57" target="_blank">expected</a> to <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/future-of-north-korean-aviation-in-russia-kim-jong-un-tours-plants-producing-su-35-and-su-57-fighters-and-sukhoi-airliners" target="_blank">show more interest</a> in Russia’s Su-57 fifth generation fighter, as the United States, Japan and South Korea have deployed their own fifth generation fighters near the country in growing numbers, the MiG-35 could be procured in greater numbers and may be made available significantly sooner.&nbsp;</p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/05/23/article_68302a5c962be7_67629932.jpeg" title="Korean People`s Army MiG-29 Fighters"></p><p >Beyond North Korea MiG-35s could also potentially be provided to Russia’s neighbour Belarus, which struggles to afford heavier classes of fighters, but faces growing pressure to make new procurements as its ageing Soviet built MiG-29s exceed their maximum service lives. The MiG-35 has the potential be marketed to other clients such as India, which faces <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/pakistani-j10c-shot-down-indian-rafale" target="_blank">growing challenges</a> from neighbouring Pakistan’s advanced J-10C fighters, as well as emerging strategic partners such as Sudan and Yemen which previously procured MiG-29s. The integration of new generations of AESA radars, <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/su57-k-77-game-changer" target="_blank">air-to-air missiles</a>, <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/su57-cruise-missile-debut-ukraine" target="_blank">cruise missiles</a>, and <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russia-su57-cutting-edge-helmet" target="_blank">helmet-mounted targeting systems</a>&nbsp;onto the fighter, many of which use technologies developed for the new <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russia-prepares-su57m1-production-airframe-upgrades" target="_blank">Su-57M1 fighter</a>, could further increase its appeal both for domestic use and for export.&nbsp;</p><p >Although the MiG-35 program has suffered from a long suspension, wartime circumstances and shifting geopolitical trends have the potential to revive the program. Russia’s&nbsp;production line for advanced medium weight fighters, which has been inactive since meeting Algerian orders for the MiG-29M in 2020, is likely to see more activity in the near future than it has over the past half decade. Although MiG-35 production is expected to remain far more limited than that for rival programs such as the Chinese J-10C, the program has the potential to see a production run far exceeding that of the preceding MiG-29M and MiG-29K jets built at Sokol.&nbsp;</p>
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