Russian drones shot down up to 150 miles inside Poland after ‘reckless’ incursion

The Russian drones that were shot down in Polish airspace overnight went as far as 150-miles deep into the NATO nation — with the defense block slamming it as a “reckless” incursion while Moscow claims Ukraine is to blame.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said at least 19 objects entered the country’s airspace Tuesday night, with the Russian drones shot down in areas much deeper into Poland than at any previous incident during the Ukraine war.

As European military leaders slammed the incident as a deliberate assault on a NATO nation, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte warned that the deployment of drones over Poland was a clear escalation from Moscow.

“Whether it was intentionally or not, it is absolutely reckless. It is absolutely dangerous,” Rutte told reporters on Wednesday.

Tusk described the overnight incident as “the closest we have been to open conflict since World War Two.”

Local officials discovered drone parts as far as Mniszkow, a city in central Poland located about 82 miles southwest of Warsaw — and more than 150 miles from the Ukraine border.

Another downed drone was also found farther up north in Olesno, near Elbag, which is located about 124 miles from the eastern border.

The drones used in the incidents were cheap, Russian Gerbera drones, a Polish army official told Reuters, the same type as the reconnaissance and decoy UAVs that Ukraine has had to deal with.

Experts have warned that the drones could have been used to test Poland and NATO’s defenses, with the incident giving an insight on the defense bloc’s readiness and speed at which it is able to respond to threats.

“What (Russian President Vladimir) Putin wants to do is to test us,” European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters in Brussels.

“Russia’s war is escalating, not ending,” she added. “What happened in Poland is a game changer.”

Moscow outlets, however, alleged that the incident was caused by Ukraine to stir outrage from Europe and gain more support.

Kyiv’s Center for Countering Disinformation slammed the reports as untrue and part of Russian propaganda to justify its attacks on Ukraine

Belarus, a Russian ally that shares a border with Poland, framed the episode as an accident that caused drones aimed at Ukraine to veer off course after encountering electronic warfare measures, suggesting Kyiv’s defenses were to blame.

The Kremlin declined to comment on the specific incident, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov accusing the West of blaming Russia “on a daily basis” for such episodes, “most often without even trying to present their line of reason.”

European military leaders, however, were not buying the explanation from Russia and its allies.

“There are definitely no grounds to suspect that this was a course correction mistake or the like,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told parliament. “These drones were very clearly put on this course deliberately.”

Rutte warned that NATO would not stand by while a member nation is targeted, warning Putin that the defense bloc will act if Russia encroaches on its land.

“Stop violating allied airspace. And know that we stand ready, that we are vigilant, and that we will defend every inch of NATO territory,” Rutte said.

With Post wires