NATO, the EU, Poland, and Ukraine each condemned the incursion, while the Kremlin denied that the drones had come from Russia.
The Polish military and NATO forces shot down several Russian unmanned aerial vehicles over Polish airspace on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
The Russian military had been conducting a large-scale missile and drone attack against Ukrainian urban centers and critical infrastructure when the incident took place.
Moscow denied any involvement, citing a lack of evidence that the drones that were shot down were of Russian origin.
Russian Drone Incursion Is “Most Serious” of Entire Ukraine War, EU Says
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that the Polish military had recorded 19 airspace violations on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. The Polish military, with the help of other NATO forces, shot down four unmanned aerial systems.
“I have no reason to claim we’re on the brink of war, but a line has been crossed,” Tusk told Poland’s parliament on Wednesday. “This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II.”
According to Warsaw, the drones entered Polish airspace from Belarus, a close ally of the Kremlin that allowed Russian troops to use its territory to invade Ukraine in February 2022. Minsk claimed that the Russian drones had lost their way, and that its own military had shot down several of them.
“Numerous drones entered Polish airspace overnight and were met with Polish and NATO air defenses,” NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said on X (formerly Twitter). According to media reports, Dutch F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jets participated in the interception of the drones.
This is the first time since the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine that NATO forces have had to take kinetic action against Russian military hardware.
European Commission Vice President Kaja Kallas announced in a statement that Tuesday’s events had been the “most serious European airspace violation by Russia since the war began.” Kallas, who also serves as the EU’s foreign policy coordinator, indicated that available evidence suggests that the attack was “intentional, not accidental.”
Andrei Ordash, Moscow’s charge d’affaires in Warsaw, said to Russian state news agency RIA that the Kremlin was “absolutely not interested in any escalation with Poland,” and denied that the drones had been of Russian origin.
Russia’s Drones Have Menaced Ukraine for Years
Kyiv was quick to draw attention to the incident—and highlight the threat posed by Russia to the rest of Europe, casting itself as NATO’s and the EU’s eastern bulwark.
“Previously, there have been incidents involving individual Russian drones that crossed the border and flew a short distance into the territory of neighboring states. However, we are now observing a significantly larger scale and purposefulness of actions,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the incident on X.
Both Ukraine and Russia rely heavily on unmanned aerial systems for tactical, operational, and strategic missions. Moscow in particular has been using drones to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses, allowing more potent ballistic and cruise missiles to pass through and strike Ukrainian military, energy, and civilian targets.
“Ukraine is ready to provide Poland with the necessary data regarding this Russian attack. Ukraine is also ready to assist Poland in building an appropriate warning and defense system against this type of Russian threat,” Zelensky added. “It is obvious that Russian aggression poses a threat to every independent nation in our region. Therefore, only joint and coordinated actions can guarantee reliable security.”
In a war that has lasted more than three years, the violation of Polish airspace by Russian drones and their shooting down by NATO forces marks a concerning escalation—though as Tusk noted, it probably will not directly result in a broader Russia-NATO war.
About the Author: Stavros Atlamazoglou
Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from the Johns Hopkins University and an MA from the Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.
Image: Shutterstock / ivkovmark.
