Poland shot down multiple drones that violated its airspace during a large-scale Russian attack on western Ukraine on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Donald Tusk denouncing the incursion as “an act of aggression” against a NATO member state.
The Polish military command said radars tracked more than 10 aerial objects during the overnight assault, and several drones that posed a threat were “neutralised.” Operations have since concluded, but search teams are scouring Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lublin regions for debris. Residents in the affected areas were urged to remain indoors for safety.
“Some of the drones that entered our airspace were shot down. This is an act of aggression that posed a real threat to the safety of our citizens,” the military said in a statement.
Prime Minister Tusk confirmed he had been in “constant contact” with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and convened an emergency council of ministers meeting for early Wednesday morning. NATO has yet to issue an official response.
The incursion forced Warsaw’s Chopin Airport, the country’s busiest, to shut down for several hours, leading to delays and disruptions. Ukrainian border regions, including Volyn and Lviv, were under prolonged air raid alerts during the overnight Russian strikes.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the violation underscored Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attempts to expand the conflict and test Western resolve. “A weak response now will provoke Russia even more – and then Russian missiles and drones will fly even further into Europe,” he warned.
In Washington, U.S. lawmakers reacted sharply. Democratic Senator Dick Durbin said Putin was “testing our resolve to protect Poland and the Baltic nations,” while Republican Representative Joe Wilson called the incident “an act of war” and urged President Donald Trump to impose crippling sanctions on Russia.
Trump, who last month hosted Putin for a controversial summit, has recently signaled readiness to escalate sanctions after months of stalled peace talks. The European Union’s sanctions chief was in Washington this week discussing the first joint U.S.-EU measures since Trump returned to office in January.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, several drones have strayed into NATO territory, including Romania and Poland, but they were previously not intercepted due to fears of escalation.
The latest incident comes as Poland prepares to close its border with Belarus amid large-scale Russian-Belarusian military drills that have alarmed neighbouring NATO members Lithuania and Latvia.
Poland has been on heightened alert since 2022, when a stray Ukrainian missile struck a village in the south, killing two people, a reminder of how easily the conflict can spill across borders.
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
