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.”
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 Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that he was in “constant contact” with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Tusk has called for an emergency meeting of the council of ministers at 8 a.m., a government spokesman said.
Poland’s military command said drones repeatedly violated Polish airspace during the Russian attack across the border, in western Ukraine, but that operations against these violations had now concluded.
Radars tracked more than 10 objects and those that could pose a threat were “neutralized,” the command said.
“Some of the drones that entered our airspace were shot down. Searches and efforts to locate the potential crash sites of these objects are ongoing,” it said in a statement.
It urged people to stay at home, naming the regions of Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lublin as most at risk, adding: “This is an act of aggression that posed a real threat to the safety of our citizens.”
Russia’s defence ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been briefed, CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins said on Tuesday. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
NATO has yet to comment on the incident.
Since the war started in 2022, there have been several incidents of Russian drones entering the airspace of states bordering Ukraine, including Poland and Romania, but they have so far avoided shooting them down.
