The United Nations Security Council is set for an emergency session at Poland's request after shooting down Russian drones that crossed into Polish airspace, a move that Poland's president described as a test of both Poland and NATO's readiness. Following the incident—the first armed response by a NATO member during Russia's war in Ukraine, per Reuters—officials imposed a ban on drone flights and restricted small-aircraft activity along the country's borders with Belarus and Ukraine.
The overnight operation to take down the drones involved Polish F-16s, Dutch F-35s, Italian surveillance planes, and NATO refueling aircraft. While Russia stated it had no intention of targeting Poland, NATO officials say it remains unclear whether the incursion was deliberate. The episode has spurred debate about NATO's defenses against drones and prompted calls among some Western leaders for increased sanctions on Moscow.
President Karol Nawrocki told Polish troops the drone incident was "an attempt to test our capabilities" and the alliance's response mechanisms. Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Wednesday called the event "the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II," though he stressed there's no evidence of imminent war. Tusk also invoked NATO's Article 4, which allows members to seek urgent consultations with their allies.
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European leaders see the event as grounds for a unified response, and Radoslaw Sikorski, Poland's foreign minister, emphasized the need to draw global attention to what he called an "unprecedented Russian drone attack." Sikorski noted he'd received a "tsunami" of support from allies, but that this needs "to be translated to facts," per the Guardian. Airspace restrictions are now in effect until Dec. 9, limiting flights mainly to military and identified civilian aircraft. Meanwhile, Poland's National Security Council is set to review the situation as Warsaw presses its NATO allies for a show of solidarity.
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