10 September 2025
“This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II," said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk about Russian combat drone flights that entered Poland's airspace early today.
Four Russian drones out of an alleged 19 were shot down by the Polish military with assistance from NATO—the alliance's air command, as well as the Dutch Air Force, scrambled F-35 fighters to support Poland's own defense efforts. Poland claimed a "significant number" of the drones were launched from Russian ally Belarus—a country known for deploying assets for attacks on Ukraine. No injuries or deaths resulting from the incursion were reported at press time.
Not surprisingly, Russia and Belarus denied the strike was intentional.
Belarus offered a somewhat weak explanation that the drones "lost their way" and even had to destroy some of them flying over their own skies. For its part, Russia acknowledged a large-scale strike against western Ukraine, but maintained there "were no targets envisioned for destruction on the Polish territory,"
The Russian Defense Ministry also offered to consult with the Polish Ministry of Defense on the matter.
However, as the Russian drone flyovers mark the first ever airspace violation for a member of NATO, Polish authorities appear less inclined to believe the situation was caused by a technical error or some other problem.
"There were 19 breaches, and it simply defies imagination that it could be accidental," said Polish Foreign minister Radosław Sikorski. "This is a threat not only to Poland. This new technology of the mass use of drones is a threat to all of the EU and we need to face it together.”
President Trump, whose efforts at ending the Ukraine conflict have been ineffective, posted the following on his Truth Social platform: “What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”
The ramifications of the airspace violation for NATO and the United States could be dire.
Some military experts feel Russian President Vladimir Putin was "testing" NATO with the strike to see how far he could push things in Russia's favor. There are also opinions that the drone campaign may have been "payback" for Poland's support of Ukraine—not to mention the country's logistical importance as a hub for NATO and U.S. weaponry.
"We stand by our NATO Allies in the face of these airspace violations and will defend every inch of NATO territory," said U.S. ambassador to NATO Matthew Whittaker.
Hopefully, this is an isolated incident, but it may change the position of Poland in the Russia/Ukraine conflict.
"Poland is now a part of this war," said Michael Bociurkiw, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank. "They are much more on the front line than they were 24 hours ago."
Watch Reaction to Russia's "Reckless" Airspace Violation of NATO Member
