Poland on alert in the face of an upsurge in fighting in Ukraine. At dawn this Sunday, new massive Russian air attacks targeted kyiv and other regions of Ukraine. A Russian cruise missile launched against towns in western Ukraine violated Polish airspace, the country’s army said on Sunday. For about forty seconds, “Polish airspace was violated by one of the cruise missiles launched last night by the aviation (…) of the Russian Federation”, indicated the army command on service
The main information to remember:
- Russian cruise missile launched against towns in western Ukraine violated Polish airspace
- Russian forces launched new massive air attacks on kyiv and other regions of Ukraine at dawn this Sunday
- For the third time in a week, the entire territory of Ukraine was placed on alert overnight
Russian cruise missile violates Polish airspace
“The object flew into Polish space near the village of Oserdow (east) and remained there for 39 seconds,” it was further indicated, stressing that the missile was observed by military radars throughout the duration of the flight. “The Polish army constantly monitors the situation on Ukrainian territory and remains on permanent alert to ensure the security of Polish airspace,” the army further indicated.
Following this incident, “all necessary procedures to ensure the security of Polish airspace have been activated. Polish and allied aviation, among others, have been activated,” the operational command of the armed forces further declared. in his press release. Another incident of this type took place in December when a Russian missile entered Polish airspace before leaving this space a few minutes later, heading towards Ukraine.
In November 2022, a Ukrainian missile fell on the Polish village of Przewodow, near the border with Ukraine, killing two civilians. Before its origin was identified, the missile’s fall on the Polish village had raised fears that NATO would be drawn into the conflict in a major escalation of the war in Ukraine, with Poland protected by a collective defense commitment from the Atlantic Alliance.
All of Ukraine on alert
According to Sergii Popko, head of the Kiev military administration, the Russian army attacked the capital using cruise missiles fired from Tu-95MS strategic bombers. Ukrainian defense “shot down about ten enemy missiles over Kiev and in the surrounding area of the capital,” Sergei Popko wrote on the Telegram social network, specifying that according to preliminary information, there were no casualties. nor damage. According to him, the attack was launched from the Saratov region in southwest Russia.
For the third time in a week, the entire Ukrainian territory was placed on alert overnight. This alert lasted two hours in the capital, according to Serguiï Popko. Russian missiles and Iranian-made Shahed explosive drones also fell on the Striï district, south of the western city of Lviv, according to regional governor Maksym Kozytskiï. “The target is critical infrastructure,” said the mayor of Lviv, Andriï Sadovy, who counted around 20 missiles and seven drones. During the night from Thursday to Friday, massive attacks by Russian missiles and drones had already targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure, causing power cuts.
Polish aviation “activated”
The town of Striï is located around fifty kilometers from the border with Poland, a NATO member, which has raised its alert level in the face of these bombings close to its territory. The operational command of the Polish Armed Forces (RSZ) “observes intense activity of long-range aviation of the Russian Federation” during the night, it said on Facebook. “All necessary procedures to ensure the security of Polish airspace have been activated and the RSZ is constantly monitoring the situation,” he continued, adding that Polish and allied aviation had been “activated”.
In December, Poland, one of kyiv’s most loyal allies, denounced the flight over its territory for three minutes by a Russian cruise missile launched towards Ukraine. Russia also claimed on Saturday evening to have repelled an attack by ten Ukrainian missiles targeting the city of Sevastopol in Crimea, a peninsula annexed in 2014 by Moscow, its governor said. “Our military repels a massive attack on Sevastopol. According to initial information, more than ten missiles have been shot down,” Mikhail Razvozhayev said on Telegram.
He then specified that the attack left one dead, a 65-year-old civilian hit by missile debris, and four injured, including a teenager. Crimea is regularly targeted by the Ukrainian army using missiles and drones because of its importance for the logistics of Russian forces occupying southern Ukraine. Ukraine, faced with the Russian invasion and daily bombing of its cities for more than two years, has promised to respond by bringing the fighting to Russian soil. On Saturday, a Ukrainian drone attack left one dead and two injured in the Russian region of Belgorod, close to the border and regularly attacked.