Poland’s prime minister has warned Poland is ‘close to open conflict’ and asked to invoke Nato’s Article 4 after shooting down Russian drones in its airspace.
Donald Tusk gave the eerie message after the country’s military recorded 19 drones violating its airspace during a suspected Russian attack on western Ukraine last night, with seven wrecks found so far.
Both Polish and Nato air defences were scrambled after drones ‘repeatedly’ violated the country’s airspace during a bombardment of Ukraine which left at least one dead.
The drones that posed a threat were ‘neutralised’ and searches to find their crash sites are ongoing – with people warned not to approach any wreckage in case they contain hazardous material.
During a meeting in Parliament in Warsaw this afternoon, Tusk it was ‘the closest we have been to open conflict since World War Two’, although he also said he had ‘no reason to believe we’re on the brink of war’.
He added it was likely a ‘large scale provocation’ and that Poland is ready to react.
But a Russian diplomat Andrey Ordash has called the accusations ‘groundless’, claiming the drones originated from Ukraine.
