Poland’s Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz confirmed that the projectile was “most likely” an air-launched Kh-101 cruise missile. “That is the most probable hypothesis,” he said. Poland remains in regular contact with NATO allies. Ireneusz Nowak, inspector of the Polish Air Force, added that Russia had fired 20 to 22 Kh-101 missiles at Ukraine overnight. Two of them were classified as potential threats to Polish territory. An F-16 was scrambled to track one of the missiles and observed its crash in an uninhabited area.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said after the crisis meeting that the incident was “serious” but confirmed there were no casualties or damage. Poland was prepared to shoot down the missile had it continued its flight over Polish territory. Tusk noted an “unusual coincidence”: the incident occurred just hours after his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which among other things discussed joint missile defense. Zelensky had warned him of the impending massive Russian attack.
Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski warned against attempts to blame Ukraine for the incident. On X, he wrote: “To preempt Putin’s disinformation, read this: ‘Kh-101 missiles are exclusively used by the Russian strategic air force.'” Ukraine has requested to join the Polish investigation, according to Lublin prosecutor Grzegorz Trusiewicz. The request is being reviewed.
European Council President António Costa condemned the attacks and said Russian aggression “poses a threat to the security of all of Europe.” The EU will step up its support for Ukrainian air defense. Estonia’s Alar Karis also expressed solidarity: “Russia’s war continues to endanger lives far beyond Ukraine.”
Source: www.theguardian.com
