Russian-made drones that crossed into Polish airspace this week were on a direct course to a NATO base used to deliver supplies to Ukraine, German newspaper Die Welt reported, prompting Polish and allied aircraft to shoot down several of the vehicles in what officials described as a deliberate provocation.
Poland said up to four of 19 drones were shot down by Polish and NATO forces in the incursion, and debris struck several civilian homes and a Polish Territorial Defence Forces base. A high-ranking NATO officer told Die Welt that "based on current information, we assume that the drones most likely intentionally entered NATO airspace." Poland activated Article 4 of the NATO treaty, calling on allies to consult on a common response.
Dutch F-35 jets were reported to have fired on some of the drones, marking the first known instance during Russia's war in Ukraine in which NATO member forces shot at Kremlin-launched drones while they were over allied territory. Polish authorities said the incursion occurred amid a wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine and that some of the vehicles had originated from Belarus, where Russian and Belarusian troops were gathering for scheduled war games.
The incursion heightened concern across NATO after two additional drones entered Lithuania later the same day, at about 10 a.m., a development officials said appeared intended to test the alliance's response. Poland said it would close its border with Belarus at midnight Thursday in connection with the exercises, and the Polish Air Navigation Agency announced air-traffic restrictions in the country's east at the army's request for national security reasons.
Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski called for an "anti-drone wall" along the border with Russia and urged allies to help finance increased defences. "We need more anti-aircraft asset like Patriot missiles and we need more means to get rid of drones — acoustic systems to detect them, and cheaper more effective ways to shoot them down," he told Radio 4, saying Europe must rebuild its defence industrial capacity.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, speaking to troops at an air base in Łask, praised the quick reaction of Polish forces and NATO allies and pledged a "great modernisation program" for the military. He said Poland expects to receive its first F-35 fighter jets from the United States next year as part of a package that foresees delivery of 32 aircraft by 2030, a step he said would strengthen Polish and NATO air-defence capabilities.
Former U.S. envoy to NATO Kurt Volker urged an expanded NATO approach to air defence, suggesting an "extended air defence zone" around alliance territory to deter further incursions. "I think the best way to handle that is to declare an extended air defence zone around NATO territory, so that anything coming within 200km, we would say 'NATO would be prepared to work to take it out,'" he said.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called the incident a "game changer" and said Moscow appeared intent on testing the alliance. "Russia's war is escalating, not ending," she said in Brussels and urged stronger sanctions on Moscow. U.S. President Donald Trump posted on social media: "What's with Russia violating Poland's airspace with drones? Here we go!" and reiterated Washington's commitment to a robust military presence in the region.
European officials said allies were examining available inventories and temporary deployments to bolster Poland's defences, while broader planning continued on continental projects such as the Sky Shield initiative, an EU effort likened by some officials to an "Iron Dome" for Europe that would integrate anti-air and anti-missile capabilities. Polish leaders and other NATO officials said they expected allies to increase both short-term deployments and long-term investment in air-defence systems and production capacity.
The incursion marks one of the most serious breaches of NATO territory in scale since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022 and has deepened fears that the conflict could spill beyond Ukraine's borders. Polish authorities, NATO representatives and European leaders framed the episode as part of a pattern of escalatory behaviour that requires a coordinated defence and political response, while stressing the need for further allied consultations under the provisions Poland invoked under Article 4.