Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has invoked NATO’s Article 4 after he said a “huge number” of Russian drones violated his country’s airspace.
Tusk said 19 drones had entered Polish airspace and those posing a threat were shot down by Polish and NATO air defenses.
Under Article 4, NATO allies are called into consultation when a member state believes its “territorial integrity, political independence or security” is threatened.
Ukraine and its European allies have called the incident a significant escalation of Russia’s war.
Ukraine believes more drones violated Polish airspace
Russia is silent so far
Trump, U.S. reaction still to come
Kyiv’s allies seek tough response to Russia
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Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk poses prior to the meeeting between the NATO secretary general and Ukrainian president with leaders of E5 Group on the sideline of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in…
Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk poses prior to the meeeting between the NATO secretary general and Ukrainian president with leaders of E5 Group on the sideline of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on June 25, 2025.
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SEM VAN DER WAL/ANP/AFP via Getty Images
06:37 AM EDT
EU’s Kallas: “Russia’s war is escalating, not ending.”
Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, warned that Russia is escalating its war in Ukraine—and she said Moscow’s violation of Polish airspace was “intentional”.
“Last night in Poland, we saw the most serious European airspace violation by Russia since the war began, and indications suggest it was intentional, not accidental,” Kallas said in a statement posted to social media.
Kallas said she was in contact with NATO’s Secretary General and the Polish foreign minister.
“The EU stands in full solidarity with Poland. Russia’s war is escalating, not ending,” Kallas said.
“We must raise the cost to 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.”
06:20 AM EDT
UK’s Keir Starmer blasts “extremely reckless move by Russia”
U.K. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called the Russian drone incident in Poland “deeply concerning” in a statement shared widely by the British media.
Britain is a staunch ally of Kyiv and is one of the major powers in the “Coalition of the Willing” that has said it would put troops in Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping force once the war ends to deter Russian aggression in the future.
“This was an extremely reckless move by Russia and only serves to remind us of President Putin’s blatant disregard for peace, and the constant bombardment innocent Ukrainians face every day,” Starmer said.
Starmer said he had spoken with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk “to make clear our support for Poland”.
“My sincere thanks go to the NATO and Polish forces who rapidly responded to protect the Alliance,” Starmer said.
“With our partners—and through our leadership of the coalition of the willing—we will continue to ramp up the pressure on Putin until there is a just and lasting peace.”
06:13 AM EDT
Trump’s reaction to Russian violation may be pivotal
U.S. President Donald Trump has for months sought to engage Russia through diplomatic means to broker a peaceful and to Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
But, despite a personal meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and assurances from Moscow that it also desires peace, Russia has intensified its invasion of Ukraine, frustrating Trump.
Trump has signaled that he is moving forward with deeper sanctions and secondary tariffs against Russia’s trading partners after threatening tougher action. He also wants Europe to toughen its sanctions and tariffs.
The serious Russian violation of Polish airspace—and the threat it posed to a NATO ally, which the U.S. is treaty-bound to defend—could prove the turning point in Trump’s tactics on getting Russia to make peace.
Will Trump use this moment to follow through on his threats of punishing sanctions and tariffs to force Moscow to make peace?
06:06 AM EDT
Hungary’s Viktor Orban rallies behind Poland
Hungary has been at odds with most of its NATO and European Union allies over the war in Ukraine, and has courted friendlier relations with Russia.
But Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a political ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, has rallied behind Poland over the Russian drone attack.
“Hungary stands in full solidarity with Poland following the recent drone incident,” Orban posted to X.
“The violation of Poland’s territorial integrity is unacceptable. The incident proves that our policy of calling for peace in the Russia-Ukraine war is reasonable and rational.
“Living in the shadow of a war is fraught with risks and dangers. It’s time to make it stop! To this end, we support the efforts of President @realDonaldTrump aimed at achieving peace.”
06:04 AM EDT
Zelensky believes more Russian drones entered Polish airspace
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his air force believes more drones violated Polish airspace than is presently known.
“In total, at least several dozen Russian drones were moving along the border of Ukraine and Belarus and across western regions of Ukraine, approaching targets on Ukrainian territory and, apparently, on Polish territory,” Zelenksy said.
“The number of Russian drones that traversed into Poland and penetrated deeply into its territory may be greater than the previously announced figure.
“According to updated data, around two dozen of Russian drones may have entered Polish airspace during the night. We are verifying this.”
Another report from the Commander of our Air Force. We are clarifying all available data and analyzing the details of this Russian strike.
Already during the night, Ukrainian forces were informing the Polish side through the relevant channels about the movement of Russian…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 10, 2025