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Polish airspace was 'violated by huge number of Russian drones', says PM Tusk
Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones, Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said on X on Wednesday adding that drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.
Tusk wrote on X:
Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones. Those drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.
I am in constant communication with the secretary general of Nato and our allies.
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Russian drones' entry into European airspace was likely intentional, Kallas says
Early indications suggest the entry of Russian drones into European airspace was intentional, not accidental, the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday.
Kallas wrote in a post on X:
Russia’s war is escalating, not ending.
We must raise the cost on Moscow, strengthen support for Ukraine, and invest in Europe’s defence. The EU plays a major role and we will support initiatives like the eastern border shield defence line.
She also described the Russian attack, where drones entered Polish airspace, as “the most serious European airspace violation by Russia since the war began”.
Kallas added that she is in touch with Nato secretary general Mark Rutte and deputy prime minister of Poland Radosław Sikorski. “The EU stands in full solidarity with Poland,” said Kallas.
Poland is ready to react to attacks and 'provocations', says PM Tusk
Poland is ready to react to any attacks or provocations, the Polish prime minister said after the country shot down Russian drones that entered its airspace during a widespread Russian attack in western Ukraine.
According to Reuters, Donald Tusk said:
We are dealing with a large-scale provocation … We are ready to repel such provocations. The situation is serious, and no one doubts that we must prepare for various scenarios.
Nato is consulting closely with Poland after it shot down drones that entered its airspace during a Russian attack in western Ukraine, a Nato spokesperson wrote in a post on social media platform X.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte “is in touch with Polish leadership,” the spokesperson said.
EU must develop 'drone wall' along eastern flank, defence commissioner says
The European Union must develop a “drone wall” along the eastern flank of its shared borders, EU defence commissioner Andrius Kubilius said on Wednesday, after Poland shot down drones that entered its airspace during a Russian attack in western Ukraine.
“Once again Russia tests frontier states, EU & Nato,” Kubilius wrote in a post on social media platform X. He added:
We shall work together with member states, frontier countries and Ukraine. Russia will be stopped.
Drone components have been found near a cemetery in the town of Czesniki, south-eastern Poland, Polish local prosecutor’s office said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that according to the findings so far, no one was injured.
Poland shot down drones that entered its airspace during a widespread Russian attack in western Ukraine on Wednesday, with the Nato member calling the incursion “an act of aggression”.
Polish airspace was 'violated by huge number of Russian drones', says PM Tusk
Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones, Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said on X on Wednesday adding that drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.
Tusk wrote on X:
Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones. Those drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.
I am in constant communication with the secretary general of Nato and our allies.
Zelenskyy says Russian attack sets 'an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe'
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described Russia’s latest attack on the country, which saw drones enter Polish airspace, as “another step of escalation” and “an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe”.
Zelenskyy said on Wednesday that at least eight drones had targeted Poland during Russian attacks overnight that deployed a total of about 415 drones and over 40 missiles.
He called for a stronger response from allies and said “delaying restrictions on Russia and its accomplices only means increasing the brutality of the strikes”.
Here is his statement that was posted on his X account:
Rescuers are now working in Volochysk, Khmelnytskyi region, where the Russians struck an ordinary sewing workshop with a missile. As of now, three people are reported injured. This is just one of the sites of today’s massive Russian attack: about 415 drones of various types and more than 40 cruise and ballistic missiles. Fifteen of our regions were under attack. Sadly, one person was killed as a result of shelling in the Zhytomyr region. My condolences to the family and loved ones.
Moscow always pushes the boundaries of what is possible, and if it does not encounter a strong reaction, it remains at the new level of escalation. Today there was another step of escalation – Russian-Iranian ‘shaheds’ operated in the airspace of Poland, in Nato airspace. It was not just one ‘shahed’ that could be called an accident, but at least eight strike drones aimed toward Poland.
An extremely dangerous precedent for Europe. Whether there will be further steps depends entirely on the coordination and strength of the response. The Russians must feel the consequences. Russia must feel that the war cannot be expanded and will have to be ended.
The pause in sanctions has gone on far too long. Delaying restrictions on Russia and its accomplices only means increasing the brutality of the strikes. Sufficient weapons are needed to deter Russia. A strong response is needed – and it can only be a joint response by all partners: Ukraine, Poland, all Europeans, the United States. I thank everyone who is helping.
Reuters has a breaking news line, citing Polstat News, that a done struck a residential building in Wyryki, eastern Poland. Nobody was injured, it adds.
We will report more details as they come in.
Airports reopen in Warsaw, Modlin and Rzeszow
As we reported earlier, Warsaw’s main airport has reopened. Now a spokesman for the Polish air navigation services agency has told TV station TVN24 that airports in Modlin and Rzeszow have also reopened.
The airport in Lublin remains temporarily closed.
President Karol Nawrocki’s meeting with the National Security Bureau has ended, according to a post by the agency on X.
Drone interception operation has ended, military says, but search continues for debris
The Polish military says the “operations of Polish and allied aviation related to violations of Polish airspace have concluded” but that the search for fallen drones and their impact site is ongoing.
In a post on X, it urged people not to touch or approach and unknown object or debris, warning that they may contain hazardous materials.
It also thanks Nato Aircommand and the Royal Netherlands Air Force for their help in ensuring “safety in Polish skies”. It added:
Ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have returned to standard operational activities.
A former US deputy assistant secretary of defence has told the BBC that it’s hard to imagine the incursion of Russian drones into Poland is a mistake.
“One drone is a mistake, multiple drones is not a mistake,” Jim Townsend has told the BBC.
This is more than likely a test - this is a test that Nato has to answer …Now is the political side of Nato that is on the hot seat to make sure the response from the alliance is appropriate.”
Warsaw's Chopin airport reopens
Warsaw’s Chopin airport says it has reopened. In a Facebook post it warned however that due to the restrictions and closures of airspace “difficulties and delays that can last throughout the day should be expected”.
It told passengers to check its website for flight information and directly with carriers.
