At least three Russian drones were shot down by Polish and NATO aircraft in Poland's airspace during overnight attacks on Ukraine, the Polish prime minister has said.
Donald Tusk stated that Poland had recorded 19 drone incursions, with some flying deep enough to temporarily close four airports, including Warsaw's main hub, Chopin.
This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War Two, he noted. This marks the first occasion on which Russian drones have been downed over NATO territory since the onset of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In a response to the incursions, Tusk sought to invoke Article 4 of the NATO treaty, prompting urgent consultations among NATO members. The Polish Ministry of Defence confirmed that the drones posed an imminent threat and warned that the situation has escalated to a serious level.
While Russian officials denied targeting Polish soil, the implications of these drone incursions have alarmed regional leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who described the situation as an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe. The incident has underscored the NATO alliance's commitment to collective defense as further aerial threats loom.
Amid ongoing tensions, Polish military forces reported that they were fully mobilized, appreciating NATO's support during the incident. The confrontation represents a worrying trend in Eastern Europe, as the parameters of international conflict shift with the increasing frequency of such violations.
