Poland Triggers Article 4 After NATO Jets Engaged Russian Drones in Allied Airspace
Things aren’t looking good here…
This article originally appeared on ZeroHedge and was republished with permission.
Guest post by Tyler Durden
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said his country would formally request the invocation of NATO's Article 4 after an overnight Russian aerial attack on Ukraine saw the alleged violation of Poland's airspace by multiple Russian drones. He called it an "act of aggression".
Tusk cited that 19 drones breached the country's airspace throughout the incident, resulting in some of them being shot down. NATO's Article 4 states: "The Parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened."
Article 4 consultations can lead to the alliance taking action if the consensus is reached. Notes from Poland says "It has previously been invoked seven times, including by Poland and seven other countries when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022."
"Triggering Article 4 launches a consultation process within NATO, which can then lead to the alliance taking action. In 2022, it resulted in NATO providing support to Ukraine and activating its own response force," the analysis continues.
A Spokesperson for the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe has described of the overnight border breach of NATO's 'eastern flank' member Poland that this was "the first time NATO aircraft had engaged potential threats in allied airspace."
He further confirmed that German Patriots in Poland were "placed on alert and that an Italian airborne early warning aircraft and an aerial refueler from NATO's Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) fleet were also launched," as cited in Newsweek.
As for Tusk, he said in his address, “We are dealing with a large-scale provocation" and that "the situation is serious, and no one doubts that we must prepare for various scenarios.”
However, this certainly isn't the first time errant drones have crossed into Poland, but in this instance they were reported to have 'threatened' a Polish city some 40 miles away from the border with Ukraine. The NY Times notes:
But the apparent scale of the incursion and the joint NATO response in the early hours of Wednesday was a startling reminder of the risk that the war in Ukraine could escalate into direct confrontation between Russia and NATO. It was not yet clear whether Russia intentionally sent its drones into Poland, which would represent a clear expansion of the conflict.
Kiev has been trying to hype this threat, and it is in its interest to do so, as it has long sought to get NATO more directly involved in the war with Russia.
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President Zelensky has initially cited 8 drones observed breaching Poland's border. "More information is coming in about the intrusion of Russian attack drones into Polish territory. As of now, it’s known about 8 drones," he wrote on X.
He also claimed this was intentional: "Increasing evidence indicates that this movement, this direction of strike, was no accident. There have been previous incidents of individual Russian drones crossing the border and traveling a short distance into neighboring countries. But this time, we are recording a much larger scale and deliberate targeting," he continued.
That's when he pivoted to calling for more integrated NATO air power to protect Ukraine:
The precedent of using combat aircraft from several European countries simultaneously to shoot down Russian weapons and protect human lives is highly significant. Ukraine has long proposed to its partners the creation of a joint air-defense system to ensure the guaranteed downing of “shaheds”, other drones, and missiles through the combined strength of our combat aviation and air defenses.
US Congressional hawks have also pounced, with US Representative Joe Wilson demanding that Trump trigger immense sanctions now over the 'act of war'.
"Russia is attacking NATO ally Poland with Iranian shahed drones less than a week after President Trump hosted President Nawrocki at the White House," Wilson wrote on X. "This is an act of war, and we are grateful to NATO allies for their swift response to war criminal Putin’s continued unprovoked aggression against free and productive nations."
Those who have long wanted to see greater US actions against Russia are clamoring for escalation. Will saner minds prevail?
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