POLAND announced on Wednesday that, together with its allies, it had shot down “hostile objects” violating its airspace during a Russian assault on neighbouring Ukraine — the first such action by a NATO member since the war began.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed that Poland, a member of both NATO and the European Union, recorded 19 airspace violations overnight and destroyed at least three drones identified as Russian.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned the incident as a “reckless and unprecedented” breach of Polish airspace, pledging that “Europe stands in full solidarity with Poland.”
Ukraine warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “testing the West” and urged allied nations to deliver a strong response, cautioning that failing to act risked allowing Russian drones to penetrate “even further into Europe.”
The incursion coincided with a wave of Russian strikes across Ukraine, including in the western city of Lviv, situated just 80 kilometres (50 miles) from the Polish border.
Although Russian drones and missiles have strayed into the airspace of NATO members — including Poland — on several occasions during the three-and-a-half-year conflict, this marks the first time a NATO state has attempted to shoot them down.
