A Russian missile that landed in Poland on Thursday was capable of carrying nuclear warheads, according to Poland's Deputy Minister of National Defence. The missile exploded in a field near the village of Tarnawa-Kolonia in the Lublin province, close to the Ukrainian border, leaving a 33-foot-wide crater.
Polish police discovered the crater and debris following reports of an explosion. The missile had disappeared from army radars tracking it in domestic airspace during Russian strikes on Ukraine. Poland scrambled fighter jets to secure its airspace after Russian airstrikes killed at least 13 people in neighboring Ukraine.
An unidentified object moving westward was detected in Polish airspace at 3:40 a.m. local time, according to the operational command of the Polish armed forces, and it disappeared from radars shortly thereafter. A Polish Mi-24 helicopter was dispatched to the object's last known location to verify radar data, pinpointing the likely crash site.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed that a missile had fallen in Poland, stating, "From the early morning hours, we have all been very strongly mobilized." He added that fortunately, there were no reports of casualties or damage from the incident.
Ukraine's foreign ministry asserted that a Russian cruise missile had crossed into Poland as part of an attack on Ukraine, thereby violating NATO airspace. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Russia had launched more than 70 missiles and over 280 drones at Ukraine overnight. These strikes resulted in casualties across Ukraine, including in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Poltava regions.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte described the incident as "yet another reckless act by Russia and a dangerous consequence of its war against Ukraine." NATO has stated it is in contact with Polish authorities and has warned that it will "take all necessary measures to defend NATO territory."