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Poland says it has shot down Russian drones in its airspace in the early hours of this morning, the first direct engagement in the war by a Nato member state.
“An operation is underway related to the repeated violation of Polish airspace. The military has used weaponry against the objects,” Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk said. It is not immediately clear how many Russian drones entered Poland’s airspace.
Poland has also shut down four of its airports, including Warsaw’s main Chopin Airport, and urged people to stay indoors.
Earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky claimed Russian president Vladimir Putin had told the US he plans to occupy the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine by the end of 2025.
The Ukrainian president said in an interview with ABC News aired on Tuesday: “That is, he [Putin] says that in three to four months, and this is what he told the Americans, the White House, and President Trump’s representative Witkoff, he said that he would take Donbas in two to three months, maximum four months.”
Zelensky warned that Russia’s plans could cost “years and a million people” if Moscow accelerates its offensive.
Volodymyr Zelensky has said at least eight Russian strike drones were aimed at Poland in an attack which can not be described as an accident.
“Moscow always pushes the boundaries of what is possible, and if it does not encounter a strong reaction, it remains at the new level of escalation,” he said, adding that ti was “not just one ‘Shahed’ [drone] that could be called an accident, but at least eight strike drones aimed toward Poland.”
The Ukrainian president added that this sets an “extremely dangerous precedent for Europe” and demanded that Russia “feel the consequences” of the attack.
Alex Croft10 September 2025 07:34
General Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces arrives for an extraordinary government meeting at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, following violations of Polish airspace during a Russian attack on Ukraine, in Warsaw, Poland (REUTERS)
Members of the media wait at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister (REUTERS)
Alex Croft10 September 2025 07:29
A drone struck a residential building in Wyryki eastern Poland but nobody was injured, private broadcaster Polsat News reported this morning citing local police.
Poland shot down drones that entered its airspace during a widespread Russian attack in western Ukraine on Wednesday, with the Nato member calling the incursion “an act of aggression”.
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 07:17
Poland has restored operations at airports in Warsaw, Modlin, and Rzeszow, officials said.
The airport in Lublin remains temporarily closed, a spokesperson for the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency (PAZP) told private television station TVN24.
Chopin Airport – Warsaw’s main international hub – confirmed it was reopening on its X account.
Poland closed the four airports this morning while its military shot down multiple drones that had breached its airspace during an attack on neighbouring Ukraine.
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 07:05
Russian drones entering Poland during an attack on Ukraine are the latest example of Vladimir Putin “expanding the war” and testing the boundaries of the West, Ukraine’s foreign minister said today.
The Polish military said in the early hours today that it had downed drones that violated its airspace as Russia launched a wave of aerial attacks on Ukraine.
“Russian drones flying into Poland during the massive attack on Ukraine show that Putin’s sense of impunity keeps growing because he was not properly punished for his previous crimes,” foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said on X.
“Putin just keeps escalating, expanding his war, and testing the West,” he added.
“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 air space, including those approaching Nato borders,” he said.
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 06:46
Police officials in Poland said they have discovered a damaged drone in the eastern Polish village of Czosnowka.
Police from the Lubin region confirmed the recovery of drone debris shortly after the country’s military command said Poland’s airspace was violated during a Russian attack on Ukraine.
“At 5.40am in the village of Czosnowka, police officers confirmed the discovery of a damaged drone,” the police wrote on X.
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 06:35
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 06:11
Polish prime minister Donald Tusk is meeting with ministers responsible for state security, and an extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers will be held at 8am local time (0600 GMT), a government spokesperson said today.
Poland said it scrambled its own and Nato air defences to shoot down drones in the early hours after a Russian air attack on western Ukraine, the first time in the Ukraine war that Warsaw has engaged assets in its airspace.
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 06:01
As of 4am GMT (7am local time in Ukraine), all of Ukraine – including the western regions of Volyn and Lviv which border Poland – has been under air raid alerts for several hours, according to Ukraine’s air force.
Earlier, the air force confirmed that Russian drones had entered Nato member Poland’s airspace. It said the drones posed a threat to the Polish city of Zamosc, but subsequently removed that statement from the Telegram messaging app.
Russia’s defence ministry said its air defence units destroyed 122 Ukrainian drones overnight.
The Ukrainian air defence fires at Russian drones above Kyiv during night mass drone and missile strikes on Ukraine (AFP via Getty Images)
Explosions are seen in the night sky as Ukrainian servicemen fire towards drones during a Russian drone strike in Kyiv (Reuters)
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 05:55
Poland has informed Nato secretary general about actions the country has taken regarding objects that violated Polish airspace, prime minister Donald Tusk said this morning.
Polish air radars tracked more than 10 objects and those that could pose a threat were “neutralised,” the Polish military command said.
“Some of the drones that entered our airspace were shot down. Searches and efforts to locate the potential crash sites of these objects are ongoing,” it said in a statement.
Poland’s military command said drones repeatedly violated Polish airspace during the Russian attack across the border in Ukraine, and the defence minister said Nato command had been briefed.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte and Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk are seen at the PMO building in Warsaw (AFP via Getty Images)
Arpan Rai10 September 2025 05:44