Lhe US Department of Defense is “reviewing” press reports that two Russian missiles “hit a location in Poland or on the border with Ukraine,” a spokesman said on Tuesday. “We have no information at this stage to confirm this information and we are examining it further”, explained this Pentagon spokesperson. According to local media, citing unofficial sources, an explosion killed two people at a grain depot in the Polish village of Przewodow, very close to the border with Ukraine. Senior representatives of the Baltic, Czech and Belgian governments have already expressed their condolences and their support for Poland, in messages on Twitter.
US President Joe Biden spoke with Andrzej Duda, his Polish counterpart. The two heads of state remain in contact and have agreed to consult on the “next steps”. In addition, Joe Biden spoke on the phone with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Poland, which shares a border with Ukraine, invaded on February 24 by Russia, is a member of NATO and some 10,000 American soldiers are in the country. Article 5 of the Atlantic Alliance Treaty stipulates that if a Member State is the victim of an armed attack, the others will consider this act of violence as an armed attack directed against all the members and will take the measures deemed necessary to come to the aid of the attacked country. “We have no information at this time to confirm that there was a missile strike”, however underlined Pat Ryder, the spokesman for the Pentagon.
Alert level raised in Poland
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday that a “Russian-made projectile” reached its territory. “At 3:40 p.m. (2:40 p.m. GMT), in the village of Przewodów (…), a Russian-made projectile fell, killing two citizens of the Republic of Poland”, according to a press release from Lukasz Jasina, the door -spokesman of the ministry, indicating that the Russian ambassador has been summoned for “detailed explanations”.
Poland has decided to raise the alert level of some military units, the government spokesman announced. “It has just been decided to raise the alert level of certain combat units… and other uniformed personnel,” spokesman Piotr Müller said after a meeting. urgency of a National Security Council. He did not mention the missile information but said there was an explosion in eastern Poland in which two Polish citizens were killed.
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French President Emmanuel Macron has “contacted the Polish authorities” after reports of two Russian missiles hitting Polish soil, and “is keeping abreast of the situation”, the Elysee Palace told the court on Tuesday evening. ‘France Media Agency. “He is exploring the possibility of a discussion tomorrow morning at the level of leaders”, “given the presence of all our major European partners and our major allied partners at the G20”, meeting at the summit in Indonesia, where Emmanuel Macron, added the French presidency.
Zelensky offers his condolences
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday accused Russia of firing missiles at NATO member Poland, calling the alleged, as yet unconfirmed, attack “a very significant escalation”. “Today Russian missiles hit Poland, the territory of an allied country. People died,” Zelensky said in an address to the nation. “It’s a very important escalation. We must act,” added the Ukrainian president, whose country is not a member of NATO. The Ukrainian president also offered his condolences for the victims of “terrorist Russia”.
“A collective response to Russian actions must be tough and principled. Among the immediate actions: a NATO summit with the participation of Ukraine to work out new joint actions, which will force Russia to change course on escalation, and to provide Ukraine with modern aircraft,” said said Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Twitter.
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“We are examining this information and we are in close coordination with Poland, our ally,” said a NATO official, on condition of anonymity.
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, said Tuesday evening “shocked by the news of a missile or other ammunition having killed people on Polish territory”. My condolences to the families. We are on the side of Poland. I am in contact with the Polish authorities, members of the European Council and other allies,” he wrote on Twitter.
Shocked by the news of a missile or other ammunition having killed people on Polish territory.
My condolences to the families.We stand with Poland.
I am in contact with Polish authorities, members of the European Council and other allies.@AndrzejDuda @MorawieckiM
— Charles Michel (@CharlesMichel) November 15, 2022
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Russia denies
Russia has called reports that Russian missiles hit Poland, a neighboring country of Ukraine, which has called an emergency meeting of its National Security Council, a “provocation”. “Statements by Polish media and official officials about an alleged Russian missile fall near the town of Przewodow is an intentional provocation with the aim of creating an escalation of the situation,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on its statement. Telegram account.
“No strikes were carried out on targets close to the Ukrainian-Polish border” by the Russian army, the Ministry of Defense said. The images of “debris published by the Polish media from the scene of the events in the locality of Przewodow have no connection” with Russian projectiles, he added. Russia fired dozens of missiles into Ukrainian territory on Tuesday, according to kyiv. In the past, debris from Russian missiles has already fallen in Moldova, another country neighboring Ukraine.