No missile interception over Ukraine – Polish minister
Poland will not shoot down missiles over Ukrainian territory until a decision is made by all members of NATO, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said in an interview with Polish radio on Thursday.
Kiev has for months been calling for the US-led military bloc to extend its defense coverage into Ukrainian territory.
A number of Polish officials have opposed the idea, with Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski accusing Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky of wanting to “drag Poland into the war with Russia” and being ungrateful for Warsaw’s continued military assistance.
Speaking to Radio Zet, Kosiniak-Kamysz confirmed that no missiles would be shot down over Ukraine by NATO forces until the bloc reaches a unanimous decision on the issue.
”Today, there is no such decision,” the defense minister said.
Kosiniak-Kamysz also shot back at complaints from Kiev that it was not receiving enough support, stating that “Poland, contrary to what the Ukrainian authorities say, is a leader in aid, including military aid.”
Earlier this week, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said the issue of intercepting Russian missiles over Ukraine could be discussed at the next NATO ministerial meeting set to take place later this month.
Sikorski has previously argued that Poland and other NATO members bordering Ukraine must be able to shoot down Russian missiles and drones that they believe pose a threat to their territories, even if they are not in their airspace.
”When hostile missiles are on course of entering our airspace, it would be legitimate self-defense [to shoot them down] because once they do cross into our airspace, the risk of debris injuring someone is significant,” he said in September.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has said that Moscow’s response to the interception of its missiles over Ukraine by Polish air defense systems would be “adequate and quite specific.”
Moscow has also warned that the involvement of Western nations in the Ukraine conflict only serves to prolong the hostilities without changing the inevitable outcome, while also risking a direct clash between Russia and NATO.
