Wednesday morning, Poland shot down several Russian drone This violates the airspace in a massive strike against the West Ukraine. The Polish military operation was confirmed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk in early morning social media messages, marking a turning point in Warsaw’s involvement in the conflict that affected the region for more than two and a half years. The Polish Defense Agency reported more than a dozen objects from Ukrainian airspace and Called a violation An act of aggression.
Poland cites article 4 of NATO
In response to the raid, Poland activated Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty and demanded immediate consultation with allies. Ivory convened a meeting of ministers at 8 a.m. local time to maintain constant contact with Union Secretary General Mark Rutte to coordinate political and diplomatic responses.
Article 4 allows NATO members to seek consultation when they believe that their security, territorial integrity or political independence are at risk. Unlike Article 5, which stipulates collective military operations in the event of an armed attack, Article 4 does not force immediate military action, but its activation constitutes a significant political escalation as it emphasizes the unification of the alliance in response to perceived threats from NATO members.
Poland has been on high alert for possible overspending since November 2022, when a wandering Ukrainian missile accidentally hit a village in the southern part of the country, killing two people. However, so far, no cases of Poland or the Joint Defense System shooting down drones on national territory have been documented. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claim During the night attack, “at least eight” Iran-made Shahed drones “target the Polish direction”, indicating that the invasion of Polish airspace was intentional.
NATO Defense Activation
Residents in the affected Polish region reported hearing explosions in the sky at night and then activating the warning sirens. The alarm was triggered by a massive Russian attack on western Ukraine, especially in the Russian region where Wallin and Lviv directly bordered Poland.
According to information released by the Polish Military Command, the state and NATO air defense systems were immediately activated after the radar discovered that the drone entered Polish airspace. The interception operation lasted for several hours, and the armed forces used air defense systems and objects considered dangerous. As of noon Wednesday, the eastern part of the country was still looking for wreckage from shooting down drones.
The airport is temporarily closed
The intervention resulted in the temporary closure of four airports, including Warsaw-Jopin and Lublin, and Rzeszów Airport, which has become a key hub for sending Western military aid to Ukraine over the past two years. Federal Aviation Administration Confirmed Polish airports temporarily closed “unplanned military activities related to national security”.
Russian drone strikes also hit eastern Ukraine: BBC report Local Ukrainian officials were cited, 24 people were killed in an air attack in a village in the Donetsk region, where the victims lined up to collect pensions. The incident occurred during a particularly intense phase of the conflict, with Moscow’s troops carrying out a slow but steady attack in most of Donetsk in western Ukraine. Meanwhile, diplomatic attempts to reach a peace agreement have largely stalled, and contacts between Washington and Moscow have not produced specific results in recent months.
Tensions rise
The incident occurred at a time of specific tension in the area. Poland is only 24 hours before shooting down Russian drones, and the Polish president warned at a press conference in Helsinki that Russian President Vladimir Putin would prepare to invade other countries after invading Ukraine. The timing of the invasion increased even more when it was believed that on Friday, September 13, Russia and Belarus would begin joint military exercises called “Zapad”, which have already caused regional security issues.
Poland announced on Tuesday that it was Close the border with Belarus In addition to the increasing number of provocations in Moscow and Minsk, it is precisely in response to what Warsaw calls “very radical” exercises. Neighboring Lithuania has also decided to tighten border controls, a sign of widespread alertness of NATO members bordering Russia and Belarus.
Wednesday’s events are also in a delicate period of international diplomacy: the U.S. President Donald Trump Announce Over the weekend, he was preparing to step into months of unsuccessful negotiations on a peace agreement between Moscow and Kief, imposing a second phase of sanctions on Russia. Now, the fall of drones on Polish territory may further complicate any mediation efforts.
This story originally appeared in Wired Italy and has been translated from Italian.
