Former Minister Wlachovský: I congratulate the Poles for shooting down Russian drones, we must be prepared for provocations

"This is undoubtedly a very well-thought-out strategy. To test the system of possible reactions of the West and prove that it does not exist. To shock Ukraine's European partners, to scare them," wrote Mykhailo Podoljak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, on the Telegram social network. He admitted that the Kremlin is trying to escalate the armed conflict:"To spread the war on the territory of Europe. So that people get used to the idea of war."

Military analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko is convinced that the Russians programmed the flight path of the drones to penetrate into a NATO member state."The drones that entered Polish airspace were still maneuvering and did not try to return over Ukraine. This suggests that their targets were predetermined on Polish territory," he was quoted as saying by the Obozrevatel website.

Kovalenko indirectly agrees with what Podoljak said, adding that he also added other motives for Russia. Like President Volodymyr Zelensky's advisor, he emphasizes that Putin's army wants to test the strength of the North Atlantic Alliance first and foremost."Secondly, to hit targets on the territory of a NATO member state, which is a key logistics center for Ukraine, for the first time. And thirdly, to try to pit Ukraine against Poland." According to Kovalenko, the third motive is related to the fact that Moscow hopes to blame Warsaw for failing to shoot down drones flying into Polish airspace.

This assumption of Kovalenko may be supported by what quickly spread on the Internet:"Russia is trying to incite anti-Ukrainian sentiment in Poland - why didn't Kiev shoot down drones over its own territory? Corresponding messages are already appearing on social networks," political scientist Oleksandr Leonov told the RBK-Ukraine server.

Zelensky specified that radars detected the movement of the first drones flying to Poland an hour after midnight from Tuesday to Wednesday."At least two penetrated the airspace of Belarus," the president wrote on Telegram. Zelensky added that up to twenty unmanned Russian aircraft could have flown to Poland. He called on Ukraine's allies to exchange not only intelligence information, but also, according to him, joint defense of the sky is necessary:"Russians must feel that Europeans can defend themselves," the president emphasized.

NATO - massive exercise in Romania Steadfast Dart 2025

Warsaw is reporting a similar number of Russian drones, but estimates of their exact route differ. The Polsat News server quoted Polish President Donald Tusk as saying that 19 drones had arrived in his country, with a significant portion coming from Belarusian airspace.

Zelensky's words about protecting the sky were followed up by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha. Like the president, he appealed to Western states to decide, in the interests of collective security, to use the air defense systems of neighboring countries to shoot down drones and missiles over Ukraine. However, NATO does not want to consider this option, because it could look like the involvement of NATO member states in a war between Putin's army and Zelensky's armed forces.