Poland Russian drones: Has Poland been attacked? Is Poland in NATO? What is NATO Article 4?
Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has spoken about the alleged attack involving Russian drones.
Polish officials have said the country’s airspace was violated by Russian drones, with the military and its Nato allies shooting down some that posed a direct threat.
Speaking ahead of an emergency meeting on Wednesday, Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk said it was the first time Russian drones had been shot down over his country.
He said Poland was at its closest to open conflict since the Second World War.
Here is what The Scotsman knows about the alleged attack to date and the likelihood of Russian involvement.
When did the alleged attack against Poland happen?
A total of 19 Russian drones are alleged to have entered Poland’s airspace overnight, leading into Wednesday morning, as part of strikes on Western Ukraine.
The first violation of the airspace was recorded around 11.30pm CEST (10.30pm UK time) on Tuesday evening, with the last one observed at 6.30am CEST (5.30am UK time) on Wednesday morning.
The alleged attack came three days after Russia’s largest aerial attack on Ukraine since the war began, an assault that hit a key government building in Kyiv for the first time.
Has Poland been attacked by Russian drones?
Mr Tusk has written on social media: “Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones. Those drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.”
Defence minister Wladysław Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote on X that “more than 10 objects” crossed into Polish airspace and those that constituted a risk to Poland’s security were neutralised.
Mr Tusk wrote on X that he had received a report from the Operational Command of the Army about “the shutting down of drones that entered our airspace and could constitute a threat”.
He said he informed the Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte about actions undertaken by the Polish side.
What action has Poland taken?
Poland’s armed forces were on a heightened state of alert on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning because of what they described as “further massive air strikes against targets located in Ukraine”.
Warsaw’s Chopin Airport warned passengers on its website that flight operations were on hold due to closure of the airspace over part of the country, but that the airport remains open.
Poland has on Wednesday activated Article 4 of the Nato Treaty to allow for consultations with the alliance’s 31 other allies in the wake of the alleged attack.
The armed forces posted on social media that a search for possible crash sites was ongoing and urged people not to approach, touch or move any objects they see, warning they may pose a threat and could contain hazardous material.
Has Russia attacked Poland before?
Poland has complained about Russian objects entering its airspace during attacks on Ukraine before.
In August, Poland’s defence minister said that a flying object that crashed and exploded in a cornfield in eastern Poland was identified as a Russian drone, and called it a provocation by Russia.
In March, Poland scrambled jets after a Russian missile briefly passed through Polish airspace on its way to a target in western Ukraine, and in 2022, a missile that was likely fired by Ukraine to intercept a Russian attack landed in Poland, killing two people.
Joint military exercises involving Russian and Belarusian troops are due to take place in Belarus starting on Friday and will last until September 16.
Troops from both countries will simulate repelling an attack, including airstrikes and sabotage, according to official reports of the games, dubbed “Zapad 2025,” or “West 2025”.
The aim is to showcase the close links between Moscow and Minsk, as well as Russian military might, amid its three-and-a-half-year-old war in neighbouring Ukraine.
The war games have drawn concerns in Kyiv and its Western allies of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, which border Belarus.
When Russian president Vladimir Putin sent troops rolling into Ukraine on February 24, 2022, many of them crossed from Belarus.
Is Poland a member of Nato?
The security alliance Nato, which stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, has 32 members, of which Poland is one.
These countries, who are called Nato allies, are sovereign states and meet through the alliance to discuss political and security issues and make collective decisions by consensus.
Poland joined Nato in 1999, alongside Czechia and Hungary.
Nato allies receive protection through the principle of collective defence, which is enshrined in article five of the North Atlantic Treaty. This article states that an attack on one ally is treated as an attack on all.
What is Article 4 of the Nato Treaty and what does it mean?
Article 4 triggers direct consultations with other Nato members when one partner country feels its security, territory or political independence is threatened.
The triggering of the article allows for high-level talks on how to counter threats. However, it does not commit any of the 32 Nato member states of the alliance to military action.
What have Nato allies said?
Several European leaders said they believe Russia is intentionally escalating the war in Ukraine, and Nato is discussing the incident in a meeting.
Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte described Russia's violation of Poland's airspace as "reckless behaviour". He expressed full solidarity with Poland in a statement.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said: “Russia’s war is escalating, not ending. Last night in Poland we saw the most serious European airspace violation by Russia since the war began, and indications suggest it was intentional, not accidental.”
Leaders in the strategically located Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia – Nato members who are nervous about Russian aggression – expressed deep concerns.
“Russia is deliberately expanding its aggression, posing an ever-growing threat to Europe,” Lithuanian president Gitanas Nauseda wrote on X.
Estonia’s foreign minister Margus Tsahkna said that the overnight attacks on Ukraine and violations of Polish airspace were “yet another stark reminder that Russia is not just a threat to Ukraine, but to all of Europe and Nato”.
Col Martin O’Donnell, a spokesman for Nato’s Supreme Allied Powers Europe, said: “This is the first time Nato planes have engaged potential threats in Allied airspace.”
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof confirmed in a message on X that Dutch F-35 fighter jets stationed in Poland under Nato provided support to the Polish air force overnight.
Mr Schoof said: “Let me be clear: the violation of Polish airspace last night by Russian drones is unacceptable. It is further proof that the Russian war of aggression poses a threat to European security.”
German Patriot defence systems in Poland were also placed “on alert”, and an Italian airborne early warning plane and an aerial refueller from Nato’s Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport aircraft fleet were launched, Col O’Donnell said.
Nato is “committed to defending every kilometre of NATO territory, including our airspace”, he added.
What has Volodomyr Zelensky said about the alleged attack?
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said in a message on Telegram the deployment of European aircraft to intercept the drones was an “important precedent”.
Russia must know the response to escalation “will be a clear and strong reaction from all partners”, Mr Zelensky added.
Mykhailo Podolyak - an adviser to Mr Zelensky - had earlier posted a map to social media, claiming the illustration shows Russian drones over Ukraine on Tuesday night.
According to the map, some of the drones are pictured entering Poland.
Mr Podolyak said in the post: "Russia deliberately, thoughtfully, and with specific intentions attacked Poland with drones.”
Has Russia or Vladimir Putin spoken?
The Kremlin has said it will not comment on the alleged incident.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on his daily conference call with journalists: “We wouldn’t like to comment on this. This is not for us to do so. It’s a matter for the [Russian] defence ministry.”
Mr Peskov was asked about the accusations being levelled at Moscow and added: “The leadership of the EU and Nato accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis, usually without backing this up.”
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