Poland has officially initiated the activation of NATO's Article 4 after several Russian drones violated its airspace, Reuters reported.

According to Prime Minister Donald Tusk, three drones have already been proven to have been destroyed, and a fourth is highly likely to have been.

The fact that these drones, which posed a security threat, were shot down changed the political situation. Therefore, in consultations with the Allies, we formally requested the activation of Article 4 of the NATO Treaty

– said Tusk.

Article 4 of the NATO Treaty states that if any member state feels that its territorial integrity, political independence or security is threatened, it has the right to initiate consultations with other members of the alliance.

Under Article 4, NATO's highest political decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, can meet, where consultations can lead to joint decisions or specific alliance actions.

Since the alliance's founding in 1949, Article 4 has been activated seven times, most recently in February 2022, when eight member states requested consultations following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

According to the Polish Prime Minister, the country has"not been this close to armed conflict since World War II," reports Sky News.

I have no reason to say that we are on the brink of war, but a line has been crossed, and the situation is incomparably more dangerous than before. This is the closest we have come to open conflict since World War II

– said Tusk.

Warsaw said the 17-19 unmanned aircraft entered Polish airspace from Belarus. The Polish side claims that the Ukrainians warned them about the approaching drones, while Minsk says they were the ones who informed Warsaw about the drones “deviating from their course due to anti-aircraft fire.” Moscow’s response was simply that Poland had no evidence that the drones were of Russian origin.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki announced that he would convene the National Security Council within 48 hours at the latest regarding the drone incident.

The news that we will receive a full report on what happened in Poland within 48 hours has prompted me to convene the National Security Council within the same time frame

– said the head of state.

The Kremlin's reaction has arrived.

The Kremlin's first reaction to the Polish airspace violation has arrived, Sky News reported.

This is not within our jurisdiction, this is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defense

– said Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman.

When asked if the EU and NATO had called the incident a provocation, Peskov responded: “The EU and NATO leadership accuses Russia of provocation every day.”

Poland summons Russian charge d'affaires

Poland's Foreign Ministry summoned Andrei Ordas, Russia's chargé d'affaires in Warsaw, on Wednesday, the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reports. The diplomat said: Warsaw has so far not presented any evidence that the drones shot down in Polish airspace are indeed of Russian origin.

We consider such allegations to be unfounded. We have not received any evidence to prove that these drones are Russian-made

– RIA quoted Ordas as saying.

So far, seven drones and the wreckage of one unidentified object have been found.

Polish authorities have found seven drones and the remains of an unidentified object in various parts of the country after they violated Polish airspace several times overnight, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry said, as reported by the BBC.

According to Karolina Galecka, the wreckage of five drones and the unidentified object was found in the eastern Lublin Voivodeship, which lies on the border of Belarus and Ukraine.

Two more drones were discovered inland, well away from the border:

• one near the town of Mniszków, in the Łódź Voivodeship, about 250 kilometers from the Belarusian border, and
• the other near the city of Elbląg, in northern Poland.

The reactions are coming.

"This morning's barbaric attack on Ukraine, as well as the unprecedented and serious violation of Polish-NATO airspace by Russian drones, are deeply concerning," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.

This was an extremely irresponsible move by Russia, which is yet another reminder of President Putin's blatant disregard for peace while innocent Ukrainians are being bombed every day

– said the Prime Minister. Starmer added that he had been in contact with Donald Tusk and assured Poland and Ukraine of British support. “My sincere thanks go to the NATO and Polish forces who defended the alliance with their rapid response,” said the British Prime Minister.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that Hungary expresses its full solidarity with Poland regarding the nighttime drone incident.

The violation of Poland's territorial integrity is unacceptable. This case also proves that our policy of promoting peace is justified and reasonable. Living in the shadow of war is fraught with risks and dangers. It is time to put an end to it! That is why we support President Trump's efforts for peace

– said the Prime Minister.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU must find a new way to finance Ukraine's defense using Russian assets frozen in Europe.

This is Russia's war. And Russia must pay. That's why we urgently need to develop a new solution to support Ukraine's military efforts based on frozen Russian assets

– von der Leyen said in her speech. She did not provide details on how the so-called reparations loan would be structured, but she stressed that Ukraine should only repay when Russia pays war reparations. No specific amounts were mentioned.

There is no panic on the Polish stock market

The Polish stock market's leading stock index also suffered from the drone incident: the Warsaw Stock Exchange's blue chip index fell about 1.3 percent on Wednesday morning. It was one of the few European regional indices to open in the red.

It's not a panic, but rather a noticeable downward movement

– Konrad Ryczko, analyst at DM BOS, assessed the situation, adding: the uncertainty is caused by how the situation will develop further.

The Warsaw Stock Exchange's benchmark index last fell in February 2022, when Russia attacked Ukraine, but has since recovered its losses and is up about 28 percent so far this year.

Russian military operation targeting a NATO member state

Extraordinary security measures have been put into effect in Poland after Russian drones violated the country's airspace: several airports were closed, the army deployed weapons, and Warsaw, along with its NATO allies, went on the highest alert.

• Russian drones attacked Poland. 
• The exact number of drones has not yet been announced, but the latest Polish statement puts it between 11 and 19.
• Polish air defense systems and radar surveillance have been put on high alert. 
• Four airports – including Warsaw’s largest airport, Chopin, and Modlin – were closed, with three reopening at 7:30 a.m. in the meantime. 
• Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is calling for a serious military response.
• The first wreckage has already been found.

We also report on the developments in the Russian-Ukrainian war in our continuously updated, minute-by-minute coverage on Index, which can be read by clickinghere.