Poland is considering a Ukrainian proposal to intercept Russian missiles aimed at Ukrainian cities or potentially entering Polish territory, stated Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski during a NATO summit at the American Enterprise Institute.
Sikorski noted, “We are a frontline state and Russian missiles breach our airspace – we assume by mistake.” He explained that missiles launched from near St. Petersburg travel along the Polish border through Belarusian airspace, briefly entering Polish airspace for about 40 seconds before hitting targets in Ukraine.
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He raised a concern: “If we shoot them down only when they enter our airspace, the debris is a threat to our citizens and to our property.”
Sikorski mentioned that Ukrainians have requested, “Please, we will not mind, do it over our airspace when they’re in imminent danger of crossing into Polish territory,” which he views as self-defense.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Warsaw to sign a security cooperation agreement that discussed this idea. Sikorski clarified, “At this stage, this is an idea. What our agreement said is we will explore this idea.”
Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz stated that any decision would only be made with NATO allies, asserting, “If NATO does not make such a decision, Poland will not make it individually.”
However, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg indicated reservations about the proposal, stating that NATO would not “get involved directly” in the conflict.
