Poland downs drones after airspace breach, Russia denies accusation

WARSAW - Poland said Wednesday that 19 objects had entered its airspace overnight during drone exchanges between Russia and Ukraine, with several that posed a direct threat being shot down.

Although Poland claimed the incident was the first reported downing of Russian drones over NATO territory, Moscow dismissed the accusation as "groundless".

The Polish Armed Forces said Wednesday morning that multiple drone-type objects had "repeatedly violated" Poland's skies. An overnight air-defense operation saw Polish F-16s and Dutch F-35s bring down at least three drones, before radar and ground systems returned to normal.

Four airports in Poland, including Warsaw's Chopin Airport, were briefly closed for military operations, with three later reopened.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki said he would convene the National Security Council within 48 hours after the airspace breach.

Before a special government meeting on Wednesday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that "procedures worked, the danger was eliminated", with no casualties reported and "no reason to panic".

Tusk added that he had invoked Article 4 of the Washington Treaty (the North Atlantic Treaty), seeking consultations with NATO allies over a threat to national security.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance has responded to Poland's requests, adding that NATO will continue to closely monitor the situation in the east, with its air defense systems kept on standby.

On Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa expressed their support for Poland. Several European leaders called the alleged incursion "unacceptable", while Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico emphasized the need to establish whether the incident was intentional or accidental.

Although Poland, the EU, and NATO accused Russia of launching the drones, Russia has rejected the claim.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that none of its strike targets were in Poland, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the EU and NATO "accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis" without evidence.

Earlier in the day, Russian Charge d'affaires in Poland Andrei Ordash told RIA Novosti news agency that he had been summoned to the Polish Foreign Ministry over the drones, although Poland had presented no evidence of their alleged Russian origin.

Belarus said its forces had tracked drones that strayed off course during overnight Russian-Ukrainian exchanges, likely due to electronic warfare.

Belarus shot down some drones near its territory and notified Poland and Lithuania of their approach, Belarusian state news agency BelTA quoted Chief of the General Staff Pavel Muraveiko as saying.