Polish and NATO forces have shot down drones violating the country’s airspace during a Russian aerial attack on neighbouring Ukraine.
Fighter jets were scrambled early on Wednesday as more than a dozen drones entered Polish airspace, the Polish military said. It is the first time that Polish and NATO forces have become engaged in the conflict. Ukraine said Russia is testing the West.
“During today’s attack by the Russian Federation on targets in Ukraine, our airspace was repeatedly violated by drones,” the Operational Command of the Polish military said in a statement.
“At the request of the Operational Commander of the Armed Forces, weapons have been used, and operations are under way to locate the downed targets,” the military said.
The army said Polish and NATO military aircraft were mobilised to ensure airspace safety.
“Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, while ground-based air defence and radar reconnaissance systems have been brought to the highest state of readiness,” the Operational Command said.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed that an “operation is under way related to multiple violations of Polish airspace”.
Trwa operacja związana z wielokrotnym naruszeniem polskiej przestrzeni powietrznej. Przeciwko obiektom wojsko użyło uzbrojenia. Jestem w stałym kontakcie z Prezydentem i Ministrem Obrony. Odebrałem bezpośredni meldunek od dowódcy operacyjnego.
— Donald Tusk (@donaldtusk) September 10, 2025
Translation: An operation is under way related to multiple violations of Polish airspace. The military used armaments against the objects. I am in constant contact with the president and the minister of defence. I received a direct report from the operational commander.
An operation was also conducted to collect debris from the drones.
A drone or similar object struck a residential building in Wyryki in eastern Poland, but nobody was injured, its mayor told the state-run news channel TVP Info. Footage showed a house with a damaged roof and the rafters showing.
Police in the Lublin region said they found a damaged drone in the village of Czosnowka while drone debris was also reported in the town of Czesniki.
Tusk confirmed that the drones originated from Russia. “We are dealing with a large-scale provocation,” the prime minister said.
Moscow appeared to distance itself from the incident. The Russian Ministry of Defence said its drones had struck military facilities in western Ukraine but there were no plans to target sites in Poland.
Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the European Union and NATO “accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis, most of the time without even trying to present at least some kind of argument”.
‘Testing the West’
Tusk said he was in “constant contact” with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. An emergency meeting of the Polish Council of Ministers was called for Wednesday.
“Aircraft have used weapons against hostile objects,” Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on social media, adding: “We are in constant contact with NATO command.”
Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Wednesday that the events show Russian President Vladimir Putin’s impunity and his expansion of the war and added that Moscow is testing the West’s willingness to respond to aggression.
“Putin just keeps escalating, expanding his war, and testing the West,” Andrii Sybiha said on X.
“This situation shows that finally the decision needs to be taken to enable partner air defence capabilities in neighbouring countries to be used to intercept drones and missiles in the Ukrainian airspace, including those approaching NATO borders.”
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said eight Russian drones had been “aimed toward” Poland, and called the episode “an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe”.
EU Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius called for the EU to develop a “drone wall” along its eastern flank.
“Once again Russia tests frontier states, EU & NATO,” Kubilius wrote in a post on social media. “We shall work together with Member States, frontier countries and Ukraine. Russia will be stopped.”
“Russia’s war is escalating, not ending. We must raise the cost on Moscow, strengthen support for Ukraine, and invest in Europe’s defence. The EU plays a major role and we will support initiatives like the Eastern Border Shield defence line,” the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, wrote on social media.
The United States also questioned Moscow’s intentions after the incident with President Donald Trump weighing in on Truth Social: “What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”
‘Military activity’
Four airports in Poland, including Chopin Airport in Warsaw, were closed due to “military activity” late on Tuesday.
According to notices posted on the US Federal Aviation Administration’s website, the other airports closed were Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, Warsaw Modlin Airport and Lublin Airport.
Chopin Airport confirmed later in a post on social media that airspace over parts of Poland, including over the airport, had been closed temporarily due to the “actions of state services and the military to ensure safety”.
Passengers whose travel plans were disrupted were asked to monitor airlines and official government announcements for updates.
Early on Wednesday, all of the airports save for Lublin, which is close to the border with Ukraine, reopened.
Ważny komunikat dla pasażerów korzystających z @ChopinAirport. pic.twitter.com/kN1W7dFSLx
— Chopin Airport, WAW (@ChopinAirport) September 10, 2025
The military mobilisation in Poland came after Ukraine’s air force reported that Russian drones had entered Polish airspace, posing a threat to the city of Zamosc, but the air force later removed the statement from its Telegram messaging app.
Most of Ukraine, including the western regions of Volyn and Lviv, which border Poland, were under air raid alerts for several hours overnight, according to Ukraine’s air force data.
Poland said earlier that it planned to close its border with Belarus at midnight on Thursday (22:00 GMT on Wednesday) due to Russian-led military exercises scheduled to take place in Belarus.
Russia and Belarus’s large-scale military exercises, known as the Zapad drills, have raised security concerns in neighbouring Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, all NATO member states. The Zapad-2025 (West-2025) drills will be held in western Russia and Belarus from Friday.
Asked about the duration of the border closure, Polish Minister of Interior Marcin Kierwinski said the border would only be reopened when the government was sure “there was no more threat to Polish citizens.”
The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had summoned the Polish charge d’affaires to complain about the border closure, which it said “caused significant difficulties”.
It described Poland’s move as “an abuse of its geographical position”.
“The temporary suspension of passage indicates rather an intention to conceal one’s own actions than the existence of any threat from Belarus,” the Foreign Ministry said.
Lithuania’s border guard said on Tuesday that the protection of its border with Belarus and Russia would be strengthened due to the exercises.
