Polish and allied aircraft were deployed on Saturday to protect Polish airspace due to the threat of drone attacks in neighboring Ukraine, while the airport in the city of Lublin, in eastern Poland, was closed, Polish authorities announced.

As reported by Reuters, the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said the aircraft were taking part in an operation near the border with Ukraine to ensure the security of our airspace, three days after Poland downed Russian drones within its airspace, with the support of NATO military aircraft.

Lublin Airport has been closed. Air defense units are on high alert on the ground.

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) September 13, 2025

Preventive actions

These actions are preventive in nature and aim to secure airspace and protect citizens, especially in areas adjacent to the threatened zone, the Administration said in its announcement.

There was no mention of a violation of Polish airspace in the announcement.

Poland had reported that its airspace was violated by Russian drones on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, during Russian strikes in Ukraine, where the war has been ongoing since February 2022. Moscow had stated that it was not targeting Poland.

The Polish Air Traffic Service announced that Lublin Airport and the controlled zone around it were closed to flights on Saturday.

Volunteers are increasing

Six kilometers from the Russian border in northern Poland, administrative worker Agnieszka Jedrusak digs a ditch. Driven by the fear of war with Russia, she wants to be able to protect her family, including her 13-year-old son.

Thousands of Poles, like Jendrusak, are enrolling in voluntary military training as the Polish military seeks to bolster its ranks with professionals and volunteers amid growing concerns about Russian aggression.

"I would do anything to keep my child safe. And I would definitely want to fight to protect him," Jendrusak told Reuters, dressed in military camouflage gear and with her face painted in camouflage colors.

For many in Poland – which suffered decades of Moscow's rule during the Soviet era – fear of Russia is intense.

The Kremlin accused Western countries of emotional overload and hostile attitude towards Russia, claiming that it does not threaten them. It refused to comment on the drone incident.

Jendrusak's military training took place in Braniewo, at a training ground for South Korean K-2 tanks, following Poland's order for 180 of the tanks in 2022 as part of a major military cooperation agreement.

More than 20,000 Poles enrolled in voluntary military training in the first seven months of 2025 – a number that is in line with last year's records, according to Colonel Gregorz Wawrzynkiewicz, head of Poland's Central Military Recruitment Center.

He estimates that about 40,000 volunteers will complete military training by the end of the year, more than double the 16,000 in 2022, reflecting the increase in public interest since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Since the start of the war in 2022, Poland has more than doubled its defense spending, from 2.2% of GDP to 4.7% this year – the highest rate among NATO's 32 members, surpassing major European powers such as Germany, France and Britain.

Changes in progress

Fearing a threat from the east, Poland inaugurated the Eastern Wall in May last year – a 400-mile-long fortification project along its border with Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad – combining extensive anti-tank barriers (hedgehogs) with advanced surveillance and electronic warfare systems.

Tusk's government is also moving military units eastward to draw personnel from areas with stronger recruitment pools. People will work and serve in places where they will defend their own homes, said Deputy Defense Minister Pawel Zalewski.

The restructuring of the Polish army focuses on mobility, armored forces, air defense and logistics operations, according to officials.

Wawrzynkiewicz, the head of recruitment, said the efforts are aimed at boosting military readiness and presence near the border, while also creating jobs in a region with traditionally high unemployment.

Volunteers can choose to continue in professional military service, join the Territorial Defense Forces (WOT), or remain in active or passive reserve.

Those participating in WOTs usually serve part-time in their region and can be called upon in emergency or heightened threat situations, such as natural disasters or border crises – for example when Belarus funneled tens of thousands of migrants to Poland in 2021, amid tensions with the E.U.

Volunteers train alongside professional soldiers, without being integrated into regular units unless formally enlisted. This structure allows for the creation of a scalable force that can support Poland's defense strategy in times of need - a similar system to that of Lithuania and Germany.

Deputy Defense Minister Czeszary Tomczyk told Reuters that — even with advances in battlefield technology — training a sufficient number of personnel remains vital to Poland’s defense. When there is war or the threat of war, the most basic things count: fuel, ammunition and people, he said.