LAST UPDATE | 15 Nov 2022
POLAND IS PUTTING some military units on a heightened state of readiness, a government spokesman has said, following unconfirmed reports that Russian missiles landed in the country.
“There has been a decision to raise the state of readiness of some combat units and other uniformed services,” spokesman Piotr Muller told reporters after an emergency national security council meeting in Warsaw.
Muller did not mention the reports of missiles but said there had been an explosion in eastern Poland in which two Polish citizens were killed.
“Our services are on the ground at the moment working out what happened,” he said after an emergency security council meeting in Warsaw.
Radio ZET has stated that the rockets struck a grain dryer near the village of Przewodow in the Lublin region of Poland, less than 10 kilometres from the NATO country’s border with Ukraine.
Polish media also reported that two people were killed in an explosion at a farm building in the village of Przewodow.
There was no official explanation of what may have caused the blast.
Polish media reported that the explosion occurred in a farm building in the village of Przewodow near the border with Ukraine.
Polish President Andrzej Duda also spoke to US President Joe Biden and NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg this evening and officials said Poland was considering whether to call urgent consultations with NATO leaders under the alliance’s Article 4.
A White House statement said: “POTUS has been briefed on the reports out of Poland and will be speaking with President Andrzej Duda of Poland shortly.”
Article 4 of the NATO Treaty states that consultations can be called when any NATO member feels their “territorial integrity, political independence or security” are at risk.
“We are verifying the rationale for the use of Article 4,” said Jacek Siewiera, head of Poland’s national security council office.
“We are in very intensive contacts with key allies,” he said.
As a NATO member, Poland also falls under Article 5 of the treaty organisation’s collective defence meaning that “an attack against one Ally is considered as an attack against all Allies.”
Article 5 was invoked for the first time in NATO’s history after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States.
Stoltenberg has said it is important to find out the facts about what caused the deadly “explosion” in Poland after holding talks with President Andrzej Duda.
“Spoke with President Duda about the explosion in Poland. I offered my condolences for the loss of life. NATO is monitoring the situation and Allies are closely consulting. Important that all facts are established,” Stoltenberg tweeted.
Ukraine has called for NATO members to convene an “immediate” summit.
Moscow’s defence minister has dismissed reports that Russian missles had landed in Poland.
“Polish mass media and officials commit deliberate provocation to escalate situation with their statement on alleged impact of ‘Russian’ rockets at Przewodow (near the Ukraine border),” Russia’s defence ministry said in statements posted online.
“Russian firepower has launched no strikes at the area between (the) Ukrainian-Polish border,” it added.
The Russian ministry said that “the wreckage published by Polish mass media from the scene in Przewodow have no relation to Russian firepower”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described the alleged attack as “a very significant escalation” of Russia’s invasion.
“Today Russian missiles hit Poland, the territory of an allied country. People died. Please accept our condolences,” Zelenskyy said in an address to the nation.
“The longer Russia feels this immunity, the more threats there will be against anyone within reach of Russian missiles. Firing missiles at NATO territory is a Russian attack on collective security. This is a very significant escalation. We must act,” Zelenskyy said.
EU chief Charles Michel has said he was “shocked” by the reports this evening, and later added he would call an emergency meeting of EU leaders at the G20 summit.
“Shocked by the news of a missile or other ammunition having killed people on Polish territory. My condolences to the families,” European Council president Charles Michel tweeted.
“We stand with Poland. I am in contact with Polish authorities, members of the European Council and other allies,” he wrote.
Shocked by the news of a missile or other ammunition having killed people on Polish territory.
— Charles Michel (@CharlesMichel) November 15, 2022
My condolences to the families.
We stand with Poland.
I am in contact with Polish authorities, members of the European Council and other allies.@AndrzejDuda @MorawieckiM
Former President of Ireland Mary Robinson told Sky News the situation was very worrying but it’s still difficult to know what has happened.
“It’s difficult to put the pieces together at the moment, but now it’s gone further and caused deaths, it appears, in a NATO country. I don’t think there should be a massive reaction, I think there should be a very prudent reaction to this,” Robinson said.
“It’s one of the consequences of missile-firing into a territory, they don’t always get to where they were intended.”
Neighbouring countries
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has convened the country’s defence council over reports of the Russian missiles.
Like Poland, Hungary also shares a border with Ukraine.
“In response to the stop in oil transfer through the Druzhba pipeline and the missile hitting territory of Poland, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has convened HU’s Defence Council for 8pm (7pm Irish time),” tweeted Orban’s spokesman Zoltan Kovacs.
Other neighbouring countries have been quick to condemn any possible attack, with Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stating:
“We are consulting closely with Poland and other Allies. Estonia is ready to defend every inch of NATO territory. We’re in full solidarity with our close ally Poland.”
Latvia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Artis Pabriks, offered condolences and stated “Latvia fully stands with Polish friends and condemns this crime”.
Major Russian aerial assaults took place in Ukraine today, strikes in Lviv took place over 60 kilometres away from the village of Przewodow.
Earlier today, Zelenskyy dubbed the fresh barrage of Russian strikes targeting his country’s power grid a “slap in the face of G20″.
“This act of genocide of Ukrainians in response to my peace plan is a cynical slap in the face of G20 and the world,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media.
Moldova
Moldova has also become unwillingly involved in the conflict, saying it was suffering from electricity outages today as a result of Russian strikes on energy infrastructure in Ukraine and called on Moscow to stop its attacks.
“Parts of Moldova are experiencing power outages as a result of Russia’s missiles hitting Ukrainian cities and vital infrastructure,” Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu wrote on Twitter.
“Every bomb falling on Ukraine is also affecting Moldova and our people. We call on Russia to stop the destruction now”.
The outages are just the latest example of how the war in Ukraine has spilled over the border of ex-Soviet Moldova, which like Ukraine has for years had Russian troops stationed in a breakaway region in its east.
Officials said the strikes in Ukraine has caused the automatic safety shutdown of systems that carry electricity supplies to Moldova and that dozens of settlements were left without electricity.
“We strongly condemn this new attack, the largest since the beginning of the war unleashed by Russia against Ukraine,” President Maia Sandu said in response.
Moldova said on 10 October that Russian cruise missiles targeting Ukraine had crossed its airspace, and summoned Moscow’s envoy to demand an explanation.
Moldova was, along with Ukraine, granted candidate status by the European Union in a show of support in the face of Russia’s offensive.
With reporting from AFP
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