The White House announced on Wednesday (September 10) that President Trump is scheduled to have a conversation with Polish President Karol Nawrocki today to discuss the incident of Russian drones invading Polish airspace.
White House officials stated that the President and the White House are closely monitoring the situation.
On the evening of September 10 local time, Russia launched drones and missile attacks towards the western region of Ukraine, with some drones entering Polish airspace. The Polish air defense forces subsequently intercepted the drones.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated on Wednesday that a total of 19 Russian drones were identified invading Polish airspace that night, with 4 of them successfully shot down.
President Trump on Wednesday midday commented on the Russian drones invading Polish airspace on the “Truth Social” platform, saying: “Why is Russia violating Polish airspace with drones? Here we go!”
In response to the incident, NATO has invoked Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty, initiating emergency consultations among member countries.
A NATO spokesperson mentioned that the NATO air defense system assisted in intercepting the drones that intruded into Polish airspace at night, with the NATO Secretary General maintaining contact with Poland.
US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker reiterated America’s commitment to NATO’s security. He stated on social media, “In the face of these airspace violations, the United States stands with our NATO allies and will defend every inch of NATO territory.”
As tensions escalate in NATO airspace, European defense officials gathered in London for a meeting. Attendees included officials from the European Five (E5), comprising France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and the UK, as well as UK Defense Minister John Healy and Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski condemned the Russian drone incursion into Poland, describing it as an unprecedented provocation against Poland, NATO, and the EU.
Poland has summoned the Russian temporary envoy in Poland and submitted a formal protest. However, Russian diplomats refuse to acknowledge that the drones belong to Russia.
Sikorski cited multiple instances of past Russian drone and cruise missile incursions into Polish airspace, with one incident occurring only 10 kilometers from his residence. He emphasized that while individual incursions may be attributed to technical errors, the scale of this event—19 separate incursions—eliminates the possibility of accidents.
He urged, “We need to build a drone wall as mentioned by European Commission President von der Leyen in his annual State of the Union address today at the European Parliament.”
“The large-scale use of new drone technology poses a threat not only to Poland,” added the Polish Foreign Minister, “but to the entire EU and NATO, which we must collectively address.”
Russia claims that the drones are not theirs. According to a statement from the Russian Embassy in Poland, “The Polish side once again failed to provide any evidence that the objects entering Polish airspace came from Russia (and there is no reason to expect that the Polish side will provide evidence), and baselessly accused Russia of provocative actions.”