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The biggest incident since the start of the war in Ukraine. NATO will be forced to resort to extraordinary measures.
Poland has requested NATO to activate Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty for urgent consultations, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced , after Russian drones entered Polish airspace overnight.
"The allied consultations I am referring to have now taken the form of a formal request to invoke Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty,"Russian drones entered Polish airspace at night
According to Tusk, 19 violations of Polish airspace were recorded overnight, and three drones were shot down.
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Dutch F-35 aircraft also assisted the Polish military in this, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof announced."The Netherlands stands shoulder to shoulder with our NATO ally, Poland," he wrote on the X network, calling the drone incursion into Poland yet another proof that"Russia's aggressive war threatens the security of Europe".
I just met with the relevant cabinet members, the Chief of Defense @CDS_Defensie and the security services to discuss the situation in Poland. We are monitoring developments closely.
— Dick Schoof (@MinPres) September 10, 2025
Let me be clear: last night's violation of Polish airspace by Russian drones is unacceptable. It…
NATO also helped them. The alliance is not treating the incident as an attack on a member, but as a"deliberate intrusion". NATO air defense systems also participated in the response to the Russian drone over Poland, alliance spokeswoman Allison Hart announced on the X network. Italian reconnaissance aircraft and aerial refueling aircraft were also involved in the operation.
Numerous drones entered Polish airspace overnight and were met with Polish and NATO air defenses. @SecGenNATO is in touch with Polish leadership and @NATO is consulting closely with Poland 🇵🇱
— NATO Spokesperson (@NATOpress) September 10, 2025
Polish authorities initially did not report any casualties or damage. Later, the governor of the Wlodawa district in the east of the country announced that debris from one of the downed drones in the town of Wyryki damaged a residential building and a car.
Drones also over Belarus
Poland's eastern neighbor Belarus also reportedly shot down several drones over its territory at night. Its military said it had destroyed several drones that had strayed from their intended path. It did not say whether they were Russian drones.
Zelensky:"Russian drones over Poland a dangerous precedent for Europe"
Russian drones, which were detected and some shot down in Polish airspace, are an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said."Whether there will be further steps depends solely on the coordination and strength of the response," Zelensky wrote on the X network.
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…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 10, 2025
He again called for increased pressure on Russia, saying that this requires, in addition to sanctions, a sufficient amount of weapons."The Russians must feel the consequences. Russia must feel that the war cannot be expanded and that it will have to be ended," he stressed.
He also stressed that it was not a coincidence. He says that more and more evidence confirms this. According to him, Ukraine is ready to provide Poland with available information in this regard and to help it in"establishing an effective warning and protection system".
More information is coming in about the intrusion of Russian attack drones into Polish territory. As of now, it's known about 8 drones. Increasing evidence indicates that this movement, this direction of strike, was no accident. There have been previous incidents of individual…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 10, 2025
Putin is testing the West
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiha , Russian President Vladimir Putin is testing the West with such actions."Putin continues to escalate, expand his war and test the West," he wrote on the X network, saying that this only strengthens Putin's feeling that he will not be punished for his actions. "A weak response will provoke Russia even more - and then Russian missiles and drones will fly even further into Europe," he warned.
Russian drones flying into Poland during the massive attack on Ukraine show that Putin's sense of impunity keeps growing because he was not properly punished for his previous crimes.
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) September 10, 2025
Putin just keeps escalating, expanding his war, and testing the West. The longer he faces no...
Kallas:"Russian drones over Poland likely deliberate act"
The European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, said after the appearance of Russian drones in Polish airspace that it appeared to be a deliberate act,"not a coincidence." "Last night in Poland we witnessed the most serious violation of European airspace by Russia since the start of the war," Kallas posted on the X network. She expressed solidarity with Poland and explained that she was in contact with both NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski.
Russia's war is escalating, not ending.
— Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) September 10, 2025
We must raise the cost on Moscow, strengthen support for Ukraine, and invest in Europe's defense.
The EU plays a major role and we will support initiatives like the Eastern Border Shield defense line. (2/2)
In her opinion, the"war on Russia" is intensifying and not ending. She called for increased pressure on Russia."We must increase the costs for Moscow, strengthen support for Ukraine and invest in the defense of Europe," she emphasized.
Ursula von der Leyen critical of Russia
In the wake of the incident, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was also critical of Russia. In a speech to the European Parliament, she called it a reckless violation of Polish airspace, which she said was unprecedented."Europe stands in complete solidarity with Poland," she added.
Russia's response:"These are not our drones"
The incident prompted Warsaw to summon Russian Chargé d'Affaires Andrei Ordash for talks. He reportedly denied allegations that the drones were Russian."We believe the allegations are unfounded. No evidence has been provided to confirm that these drones are of Russian origin," he said.
