WARSAW: Poland has said that it has a “constitutional duty” to intercept and shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine that are on course to strike Polish territory, Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in an interview with the Financial Times published on Monday.
The statement comes in the wake of heightened security concerns following a breach of Polish airspace last week. The incident was reportedly caused by what the Polish army suspects was a drone, which has yet to be located despite a week-long search. This breach occurred shortly after Russia launched a series of deadly strikes on Ukraine.
Amid a new wave of Russian aerial attacks on Monday, Poland took proactive measures by deploying its fighter jets to the Ukrainian border to safeguard its airspace. Sikorski said that while NATO membership is crucial for collective security, it does not absolve individual nations from their own responsibilities. He said, “Membership in NATO does not trump each country’s responsibility for the protection of its own airspace — it’s our own constitutional duty.”
Sikorski further elaborated on the potential risks associated with missiles entering Polish airspace. “I’m personally of the view that, when hostile missiles are on a course of entering our airspace, it would be legitimate self-defence to strike them because once they do cross into our airspace, the risk of debris injuring someone is significant,” he said.
In March, Poland reported an incursion by a Russian cruise missile, which prompted a formal request for an explanation from Moscow. Another similar incident occurred in December 2023 when a Russian missile entered Polish airspace briefly before returning to Ukraine.
Similarly, in November 2022, a Ukrainian air-defence missile fell on the Polish village of Przewodow, near the Ukrainian border, killing two people. Initially, there were fears that this incident might escalate into a broader conflict involving NATO, but it was later identified as a Ukrainian missile.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last week called for increased support from European nations to help intercept drones and missiles over Ukraine.
