2 dead after rocket strike in Poland – overview in 6 points In private jet to climate summit – Barely elected, Lula is already in the crossfire

What happened?

Tuesday evening there were the first reports of an explosion on Polish territory. Polish authorities subsequently confirmed that a rocket hit a farm in the village of Przewodow. The explosion, which took place around 3:40 p.m., killed two people. Przevodow is located just six kilometers from the Ukrainian border and about 100 kilometers north of the Ukrainian city of Lviv.

Shortly after the first reports of the missile hit, rumors circulated that it could be a Russian missile. Russia had fired huge missiles at Ukraine that day. According to information from Kiev, about 100 rockets flew into Ukrainian territory and Lviv was also hit by the attacks.

The Polish government confirmed on Wednesday evening that it was a Russian-made missile. However, Polish President Andrzej Duda stressed that there is no evidence that Russia fired the missile and they do not want to jump to conclusions. Both Russia and Ukraine use Soviet-made missiles.

The latest information about the missile impact is always available here in the live ticker:

NATO response

NATO immediately responded to the reports from Poland and is holding an emergency meeting on Wednesday morning. A NATO spokesman for the German press agency announced this late on Tuesday evening. A spokesman for the Polish government had said earlier in Warsaw that it had been decided together with NATO allies to investigate whether there was reason to initiate the procedures of Article 4 of the NATO treaty.

Article 4 provides for consultations between NATO countries if one of them sees a threat to the integrity of its territory, its political independence or its own security. According to official figures, Article 4 has been invoked seven times since the NATO alliance was formed in 1949.

This was last the case on February 24, 2022: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and the Czech Republic had applied after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The incident in Poland was also directly addressed at the G20 summit in Indonesia. After a telephone conversation with Polish President Duda, US President Joe Biden met with the heads of state of the G7 countries (US, France, UK, Japan, Germany, Italy and Canada).

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced Wednesday afternoon that there was no evidence of a deliberate attack on Poland. According to preliminary analyses, the incident was probably caused by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile.

The reaction of Switzerland and the EU

Federal President Ignazio Cassis issued a statement on Wednesday evening. He wrote on Twitter that he was very concerned about recent developments in Poland and Ukraine. He calls for restraint so that the incident can be investigated in peace and condolences to the affected families.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, also expressed concern about the missile strike. She wrote on Twitter that she was alarmed by the reports from Poland and expressed her condolences to the country, pledging the country’s support and solidarity from the EU. One of them is in contact and is closely monitoring the situation, says Von der Leyen.

Other high-ranking EU representatives, such as Council President Charles Michel or Parliament President Roberta Metsola, made similar statements, assuring Poland of the EU’s support.

So says Ukraine

Immediately after the incident, it was clear to representatives of the Ukrainian government that there was no accident behind the impact, but that Russia was camouflaging the missile impact as such. Presidential adviser Mikhaylo Podolyak wrote on Twitter that it was not an accident, but a planned “greeting” from Russia. This is what happens when evil goes unpunished and when politicians try to appease Russia as an aggressor. The Russian regime of terror must be stopped. Podolyak also sent his condolences to the families of the victims.

President Zelenskyj also issued a statement. He spoke by phone with Polish President Andrzej Duda. Information was exchanged and facts clarified. Europe and the world must be protected from Russia

Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called for a “unified response” against Russia. He proposed an extraordinary NATO summit with the participation of Ukraine to discuss the incident. In addition, there is again a plea for more support for air defense.

That’s what Russia says

Russia immediately rejected the allegations from Ukraine. The defense ministry in Moscow described the missile strike in Poland as a “targeted provocation” to once again paint Russia in a bad light. No shots were fired at targets in the Ukrainian-Polish border area, the ministry said. The photos of alleged debris circulating in the Polish media also have nothing to do with Russian weapon systems.

Which scenarios are possible?

Although the Polish government confirmed that the missile was Russian-made, it cannot be said with certainty that Russia fired it. This was confirmed by Polish President Andrzej Duda. On the one hand, both Russia and Ukraine use Russian-made missiles. On the other hand, there are several scenarios that are possible in addition to a targeted attack. In the Polish political magazine Polityka, ex-military pilot and army expert Michael Fiszer outlines three possible options besides a deliberate Russian attack:

US President Joe Biden spoke early Wednesday morning about this S-300PM system that Ukraine is using for air defense, according to the German news agency DPA. Official confirmations are still pending.

(con/sda/dpa)