On Friday evening, Polish time, a UN Security Council meeting convened in New York at Poland’s request. This is the first initiative of its kind in Poland’s history. “We call on all concerned to act responsibly and to avoid any actions and rhetoric that would further heighten already high tensions,” said UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo during Friday’s Security Council meeting on Poland.
“This is not the first time that drones have been detected in neighboring countries during the war in Ukraine, but it is the first time that multiple drones have penetrated so deeply into the airspace of a neighboring country,” DiCarlo said. “It is also the first time that Poland and its NATO allies have used force to neutralize a perceived threat,” she added.
She called on “all concerned” to act responsibly and to refrain from actions and rhetoric that would further increase already high tensions.
The UN representative recalled that the incident occurred during a massive Russian attack on Ukraine. She called for an immediate ceasefire and emphasized that the war must end with a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace.
France: We will not bend in the face of Russian intimidation
“France is increasing its support for Poland’s air defense, and we will not be intimidated by Russia,” said France’s ambassador to the UN, Jérôme Bonnafont, during Friday’s UN Security Council meeting on Poland.
France is stepping up its support for Poland’s air defense; we will not bend in the face of Russian intimidation, the French representative said. He also underlined that France, together with the United States and other partners, has developed robust security guarantees for Ukraine that will enable lasting peace once a ceasefire is agreed in the war with Russia.
“This is an opportunity to say once again to Russia, a permanent member of this Council, that the time has come to stop claiming it wants peace when it simply refuses to halt hostilities by expanding the scope of brutal destabilizing measures. It is now up to Russia to stop escalating the conflict and to engage seriously in negotiations. Our collective security is at stake,” Ambassador Bonnafont added.
United Kingdom: We will defend every inch of Alliance territory
The United Kingdom will continue to work with its NATO allies to defend every inch of allied territory and expresses solidarity with Poland and Ukraine, said UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward during Friday’s UN Security Council meeting on Poland.
“The United Kingdom expresses full solidarity with Poland and Ukraine. We will continue to work with our NATO allies to defend every inch of allied territory,” Woodward declared.
She stressed that although it is not the first time Russia has violated Polish airspace, the latest incident was unprecedented in its scale and was just another stage in Russia’s mounting escalation.
“Over just the past three months, the number of child victims (in Ukraine) has tripled; there have been attacks on government buildings. There have been relentless attacks on critical national infrastructure. All of this is part of a clear pattern of escalation, and these actions shake the foundations of international peace and security and show who Vladimir Putin really is,” Woodward added.
Brazen, convoluted, and mendacious statement by the Russian representative
“It is physically impossible for our drones to have reached Polish territory,” said Russia’s ambassador Vasily Nebenzya during the UN Security Council meeting on the violation of Polish airspace by Russia. He also asserted that Moscow is interested in de-escalation.
“The maximum range of the drones used in this attack did not exceed 700 kilometers, which physically makes it impossible for them to reach Polish territory. Despite the manifest groundlessness of the accusations against us, we want to ensure a comprehensive and objective clarification of what happened,” the Kremlin representative said.
“Russia’s Foreign Ministry is also ready to take part in this work. If the Polish side is indeed interested in reducing tensions rather than stoking them, we appeal to our Polish colleagues to make use of these proposals instead of engaging in megaphone diplomacy (…) We have repeatedly stated that we are not interested in escalating tensions with Warsaw,” the ambassador said.
Nebenzya suggested that the drones could have been launched by Ukraine, mentioned the 2022 incident in Przewodów, and cited a remark by President Andrzej Duda in an interview in which he reportedly said that the authorities in Kyiv tried to pressure Warsaw to bring accusations against Russia.
He also assured that the Zapad-2025 military exercises pose no threat to anyone and criticized Poland’s decision to close its border with Belarus. He maintained that only Ukraine and the “European party of war” benefit from the current situation. He argued that Ukraine is not interested in dialogue with Russia because President Volodymyr Zelensky did not agree to come to Moscow for talks.