Foreign Minister Sikorski says that Poland should down Russian missiles over Ukraine

Poland and other countries bordering Ukraine are obliged to shoot down Russian missiles before they enter their airspace.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski explained in an interview with the Financial Times that Poland is obliged to ensure the safety of its citizens, despite concerns that intercepting missiles over Ukrainian territory could draw NATO into the war between Russia and Ukraine. 

"Membership in Nato does not trump each country’s responsibility for the protection of its own airspace – it’s our own constitutional duty. I’m personally of the view that, when hostile missiles are on course of entering our airspace, it would be legitimate self-defence [to strike them] because once they do cross into our airspace, the risk of debris injuring someone is significant," Sikorski said. 

The majority of people in Poland believe that the Polish military should shoot down objects flying over Polish territory during Russian attacks on Ukraine, even if they are not sure what objects they are.

Following a large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine on the morning of 26 August, Poland reported that its airspace had been violated by an "aerial object", likely a kamikaze drone.

General Maciej Klisz, Commander of the Operational Command of the Armed Forces of Poland, stated that judging from its trajectory, velocity and altitude, the object was definitely not a missile and was most likely a drone.

Polish media, citing sources in the military, reported that they were inclined to believe that the drone was a Shahed and had remained in the country's airspace for at least 33 minutes.