Polish army believes drone that exploded in eastern Poland was launched from Russia – Europe | Ukraine

Poland’s foreign ministry spokesperson Paweł Wroński has just confirmed that Poland will send a diplomatic protest note to Russia in response after a drone believed to be Russian exploded in eastern Poland in early hours of the morning.

Speaking to TVN24, he said:

“Of course, we are aware – as has already happened in the past – that Russia generally does not admit [responsibility for] anything produced by it falls on to our territory, because these drones are in fact saturated with parts from all over the world.

This time there is one more important matter, another element of diplomatic activity with broader significance. Namely, we will of course inform our allies about the entire case and present all other instances of violations of Polish airspace.

Why is this important? In recent talks concerning the cessation of the war, there was an argument this is not just a war taking place on the periphery of Europe, but a situation that threatens not only Ukraine, but also Europe, including Nato states covered by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.

And so here we have visible proof that Poland’s airspace is also endangered by this war, that something could happen, something could explode, it is unsafe, people could die, and the security of an allied state of the North Atlantic Alliance is at risk.”

Speaking alongside the minister, general Dariusz Malinowski, Deputy Commander of Armed Forces Operational Command, indicated it was believed the drone that exploded in Poland was launched from Russia.

He said the view was based on intelligence as “we don’t have a 100% percent certainty that it was … this specific drone, although we do know the locations from which these types of drones are launched, and they are located on Russian territory.”

Malinowski added it wasn’t clear if it was a deliberate violation of Poland’s airspace or a malfunction of a drone targeting Ukraine.

He revealed that it was a military drone propelled by a Chinese-produced engine.

“I’ll say one thing that is certain: Russia will never admit to this. Just as it hasn’t admitted to any of the eight incidents in Moldova, three incidents in Romania, three in Lithuania, two in Latvia, or the one drone incident in Bulgaria,” minister Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

Poland’s deputy prime minister and defence minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz has just confirmed that the drone that exploded in Poland overnight is believed to be linked to Russia.

“Russia is once again provoking Nato countries following drone incidents that have taken place in Romania, Lithuania, Latvia,” he said.

“This is happening at a particularly important moment, when discussions about peace are ongoing. This is happening at a time when there is hope that the war initiated by Russia — a war against the Ukrainian state, but also a war threatening the security of Nato countries — has a chance to come to an end.”

Poland’s foreign minister Radosław Sikorski responded to the overnight drone incident in eastern Poland (15:33) saying on X that “another violation of our airspace from the East confirms that Poland’s most important mission within Nato is the defence of its own territory”.

Sikorski said there would be a formal protest “against the perpetrator,” without naming the country believed to be behind the incident.

Separately, Sikorski’s spokesperson, Paweł Wroński, was reported by Reuters as saying that the object that exploded overnight in a cornfield in eastern Poland was a Russian version of the Shahed drone.

Meanwhile, the UK has adopted new sanctions cracking down on what it said were “Russia’s attempts to avoid sanctions by exploiting Kyrgyz financial systems and crypto network.”

The new sanctions target eight people or entities allegedly involved in the practice.

The UK government said:

With sanctions continuing to bite, Russia has turned to the Kyrgyz financial sector to channel money through opaque financial networks, including through the use of cryptocurrencies. These networks have created a convoluted scheme to evade sanctions imposed by the UK and its partners.

Today’s action closes in on the Kyrgyzstan-based Capital Bank, and its director Kantemir Chalbayev, which Russia uses to pay for military goods. Sanctions also hit the Grinex and Meer cryptocurrency exchanges, the infrastructure behind a new rouble-backed cryptocurrency token A7A5, which has moved $9.3bn on a dedicated crypto exchange in just four months and is specifically designed as an attempt to evade western sanctions.

Keeping up the pressure on Russia’s war machine is vital to reinforcing President Trump’s efforts to stop the killing in Ukraine and force Putin to engage in meaningful talks. It is also a crucial step for security in the UK and beyond.

The head of the British armed forces will tell his American counterparts the UK is prepared to send troops to defend Ukraine’s skies and seas but not to the frontline with Russia, as planning intensifies for a postwar settlement.

Tony Radakin, the chief of the defence staff, will on Wednesday attend meetings at the Pentagon designed to finalise what 30 different countries are willing to commit to Ukraine’s national security.

Radakin is expected to confirm the UK will provide soldiers to help with logistical support and training, but not deploy them close to Russia.

Officials had been talking about deploying as many as 30,000 troops to protect Ukrainian sites, but that has been scaled back amid opposition from some European countries.

One British official said: “Wednesday is a really important moment. Nothing happens in Washington without the president giving the green light, so Trump giving his support to security guarantees on Monday kickstarted a lot of activity.”

Another said Radakin would echo the pledges made last week by John Healey, the defence secretary, who said Britain was willing to deploy troops to Ukraine “to secure the safe skies, safe seas and to build the strength of the Ukrainian forces”.

They said ministers envisaged this as meaning logistical and training support rather than sending battalions of frontline troops who could end up in combat.

Elsewhere, Russian president Vladimir Putin spoke with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan earlier today.

The Turkish president’s office said that Erdoğan backed the effort to establish a permanent peace in Ukraine, Reuters reported, with AFP noting he supported the involvement of “all parties.”

Erdoğan also told Putin he was closely following developments related to the process, and that Turkey had strived for a just peace since the beginning of the war, it said.

Russia is in favour of reliable security guarantees for Ukraine but it hopes the United States understands that discussing security issues without Russia is a “road to nowhere”, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.

The US has an increasingly clear understanding of the “root causes” of the Ukraine crisis, Lavrov added.

In further quotes, carried by Reuters, Lavrov also criticised what he saw as “clumsy” attempts by Europe to change Trump’s position on Ukraine, warning that the bloc was only trying to “aggressively escalate the Ukraine situation.”

He also claimed that Europeans did not field any “constructive” ideas in their meeting with Trump.

A regional prosecutor in Poland said that the initial assessment is that the object which exploded overnight in eastern Poland was a military drone.

Speaking at a press conference, prosecutor Grzegorz Trusiewicz said authorities could not yet confirm the origin of the drone, with forensic experts expected to arrive on scene shortly to lead the probe. It is believed that the drone was struck by explosive materials it carried.

The drone’s wreckage will be carefully collected and checked in a laboratory, he said.

Trusiewicz said the authorities couldn’t confirm what triggered the explosion, with investigators also looking at a potential crash with high-voltage power lines.

He said he couldn’t rule out that the drone arrived from abroad.

The prosecutor also provisionally ruled out two of the earlier suggestions it could be a smuggling or a civil drone (12:32).

Nato’s military chiefs are meeting (virtually) this afternoon to discuss the latest on Ukraine including eventual security guarantees that could be provided in case of a peace arrangement.

The meeting is set to being at 2.30pm CEST (1.30pm BST), with only few details publicly available.

But the focus is expected to be on taking forward what was discussed at the Monday’s White House summit with US president Trump, Ukrainian president Zelenskyy and numerous European leaders.

Separately, on Tuesday evening top US officer Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, held talks with European military chiefs on the “best options for a potential Ukraine peace deal,” a US defence official told AFP.

We are getting a bit more detail on that object that exploded overnight in a field in eastern Poland (10:14), with authorities investigating three theories of a Russian or smuggling drone or an act of sabotage.

The incident took place in the village of Osiny, some 120 km from the Ukrainian border and 100 km from the Belarusian border.

The blast, captured on some CCTV cameras in the area, shattered windows in nearby homes, but nobody was injured, PAP news agency reported. Police officers found burnt metal and plastic debris at the site, it added.

The Rzeczpospolita newspaper claimed the object was identified as a Russian drone Shahed, regularly deployed by Russian forces against Ukraine.

Poland’s deputy prime minister and defence minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said it was most likely a drone of some sort, but was cautious about prejudging the investigation.

“The entire incident is being verified.

The three hypotheses: a drone that is Belarusian, Russian, or a drone used for smuggling, or an act of sabotage that could have taken place on Polish territory, none of these possibilities should be ruled out.”

Kosiniak-Kamysz compared the situation to recent incidents when Russian drones flew into Lithuania and Romania.

Jakub Krupa

It’s Jakub Krupa here, taking over from Charlie Moloney.

Good morning or afternoon, depending on where you are.

I will guide you through the rest of the day in Europe.

Ukraine’s president said on Wednesday that Russia had struck a gas distribution station in the southern region of Odesa.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X: “Last night, a drone strike on Okhtyrka in the Sumy region injured 14 people. A family with wounded children – 5 months, 4 years, and 6 years old – sought assistance after the attack. In Kostiantynivka, Donetsk region, a glide bomb strike damaged five apartment buildings, and at least three people still remain under the rubble. The rescue operation continues.

“There was also a treacherous strike on a gas distribution station in the Odesa region. Shelling also targeted the Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Poltava regions. In total, more than 60 drones and a ballistic missile were used.

“All of these are demonstrative strikes that only confirm the need to put pressure on Moscow, the need to impose new sanctions and tariffs until diplomacy is fully effective,” Zelenskyy added.