Poland convened emergency consultations with NATO allies on Wednesday after Russian drones crossed its airspace overnight, in what Warsaw described as a deliberate provocation that risks dragging the war in Ukraine closer to the alliance’s doorstep.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Polish air defenses identified 19 separate violations and shot down at least three drones after scrambling jets in coordination with allied forces. While no casualties were reported, debris damaged a house and a car in southeastern Poland, officials confirmed.
Calling the incident an “act of aggression,” Tusk invoked NATO’s Article 4 — a rarely used provision allowing any member to request urgent talks when its security is threatened. It was only the eighth time in the alliance’s 75-year history that the clause has been activated. The North Atlantic Council, NATO’s top political body, shifted its weekly session into an Article 4 meeting.
The airspace breach came as Russia launched one of its heaviest bombardments in weeks against Ukraine, striking cities across the country, including Lviv, roughly 50 miles from Poland’s border. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the violation a “dangerous precedent for Europe,” urging Western allies to deliver a “clear and strong” response.
Though Russian drones and missiles have occasionally strayed into NATO territory before, no member state had previously attempted to shoot them down. Polish commanders described the overnight events as “unprecedented.”
Russia denied responsibility. Moscow’s ambassador in Warsaw, Andrei Ordash, said he had been summoned to Poland’s foreign ministry and insisted no evidence had been presented that Russian drones were involved.
Read Also: Maryland’s Wes Moore Launches Reelection Bid
A senior NATO diplomat, speaking anonymously, suggested the breach was unlikely to mark the beginning of a wider confrontation. “It looks like either a test of NATO’s resolve or simply an attempt to strike Ukraine from a different angle,” the diplomat said, predicting the alliance’s response would focus on bolstering air defenses in Poland and along the eastern flank.
Still, the incursion has rattled Warsaw. On Tuesday, newly elected President Karol Nawrocki warned that Vladimir Putin harbored ambitions beyond Ukraine. “We do not trust Vladimir Putin’s good intentions,” Nawrocki said. “We believe he is ready to invade other countries.”
Poland remains one of Kyiv’s most committed backers, hosting more than a million Ukrainian refugees and serving as a key hub for Western aid. The drone incident underscores how easily the war could spill into NATO territory — and how quickly the alliance could be forced into difficult decisions.