2 Dead... Emergency Meeting Convened
NATO Mutual Consultation Clause Activation Under Review
EU Leadership Also Expresses Concern
[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Russia carried out the largest missile attack since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, and during this airstrike, missiles fell on Polish territory, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), resulting in two deaths. The Polish government has raised its military readiness and is considering invoking Article 4 of the NATO treaty in response.
According to major foreign media including the AP and CNN on the 15th (local time), two missiles fell on the village of Przewod?w near the Ukraine border in eastern Poland, a NATO and European Union (EU) member country, killing two people.
Polish local media reported that missiles launched from Russia towards Ukraine veered off course and fell in the Polish border area, with the deceased identified as farm workers. Social media showed images of destroyed farm vehicles in the village where the missiles landed.
Piotr M?ller, spokesperson for the Polish government, told reporters in Warsaw that day, "We have raised military readiness," and added, "We are also considering invoking Article 4 of the NATO treaty, the mutual consultation clause." This article allows NATO member states to hold mutual consultations whenever the territorial integrity, political independence, or security of a member state is threatened.
The Polish government announced that it immediately convened an emergency National Security Council meeting to respond to the crisis, but foreign media reported that it refrained from explicitly stating that the missiles were presumed to have been launched from Russia.
Patrick Ryder, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense, said, "The United States is aware of reports that two missiles struck the Polish area near the Ukrainian border," adding, "We take this seriously, but at this stage, we do not have information to confirm these claims."
NATO and EU leadership expressed concern and called for a thorough investigation. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tweeted that he had spoken with Polish President Andrzej Duda regarding the explosion, expressing condolences for the loss of life. He stated, "NATO is closely monitoring the situation and consulting closely with allies."
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, tweeted, "I am shocked by reports of explosions in Poland following Russia’s large-scale missile attacks on Ukrainian cities," and sent "the strongest message of support and solidarity to friends in Poland and Ukraine."
Charles Michel, President of the European Council, also expressed condolences, saying, "I am shocked by the news that missiles or other munitions have caused deaths on Polish territory," and extended his sympathies to the bereaved families.
On the same day as the G20 summit, Russia launched its largest missile strike since the start of the war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that about 100 missiles were fired across Ukraine that day.
This surpassed the previous record of 84 missiles launched on the 10th of last month as the first retaliation for the Crimean Bridge explosion, marking the largest scale since the outbreak of the war. The Ukrainian Air Force stated that 70 missiles were shot down. A Ukrainian Air Force spokesperson said Russia used X-101 and X-555 cruise missiles.
Russia denied the attack on Poland, dismissing it as a "deliberate provocation by the West to escalate the situation."
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