What we know about claims Russia attacked Poland

On Sept. 9 and 10, 2025, Poland, alongside North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies, shot down multiple Russian drones that made incursions into Polish airspace during a Russian offensive targeting Ukraine, marking the first time a NATO member had fired anything in the Russia-Ukraine war since it began in 2022.

Four Polish airports, including two in Warsaw, temporarily shut down and the public received warnings to stay indoors. At least 19 drones made the incursion, leading several European leaders to claim that the airspace violation was not accidental.

Posts shared across social media called the intrusion an “attack,” causing many commenters to declare the posts “fake news” and ask for a source of the claim. One post (archived), which received more than 41,000 views, read: “BREAKING: SYSTEMATIC RUSSIAN DRONE ATTACK ON POLAND.”

Other posts implied that images showed a home in Poland that was damaged by the alleged Russian attack. The building in question, rather than being targeted by a drone, sustained damage as a result of Poland and allies shooting down the drone.

These posts, through omitting key context, failed to accurately show the full picture of events. Here’s what Russia’s and Poland’s responses were and how they compare with reality:

What did both sides say?

Poland and its allies claimed the incident was an “unprecedented” incursion into Poland by Russian drones and marked a major escalation in the war. Although Russian drones have crossed into Polish territory before (including twice in the previous week), this incursion involved a greater number of drones, and they flew farther into Polish territory. 

“This Russian provocation … is nothing more than an attempt to test our capabilities,” Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki said. 

Meanwhile, Russia’s Defence Ministry denied that it planned to hit any targets in Poland. In fact, Russia claimed the drones only “allegedly” crossed the Polish border. The Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement:

The Defense Ministry has unequivocally confirmed that targets for destruction on the territory of the Republic of Poland were not planned, and the flight range of the UAVs used in the aforementioned decommissioning of enterprises of the military-industrial complex of Ukraine, which, according to Warsaw, allegedly crossed the Polish border, does not exceed 700 kilometers. These specific facts completely debunk the story again spread by Poland to further escalate the Ukrainian crisis.

The Russian ministry also said it was “prepared to hold consultations with the Polish Defence Ministry on this topic.”

While the evidence is apparent that drones did cross into Polish airspace and that this was not an “alleged” incident, as Russia claimed (multiple reports with images emerged across Poland), there is no evidence to suggest the drones were on course to specifically hit targets in Poland. This map from The Independent identifies all known crashes across Poland, as of Sept. 12.

(Alex Croft for The Independent)

A spokesperson for a prosecutor’s office in eastern Poland told the news media that all nine drones found as of Sept. 10 were unarmed dummies called Gerbera drones, The New York Times reported. Regardless, European officials have described the incident as a clear escalation.

What was the international response?

Poland responded to the incursions by invoking Article 4 of the NATO Agreement, which allows allied countries to “consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened.” This differs from Article 5, which dictates that an attack on one NATO member is an attack on them all, and will take necessary action, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain regional security.

The U.N. Security Council met Sept. 12, with NATO allies rallying around Poland’s security concerns in the face of the incursions.

Russia’s representative maintained that the drones did not have the range to be able to fly into Polish airspace, despite the evidence to the contrary. On Sept. 15, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin, told reporters: “NATO is at war with Russia. This is obvious, and it does not require any additional evidence.” 

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk did not go so far as that, saying soon after the incident there was “no reason to claim we’re on the brink of war, but a line has been crossed, and it’s incomparably more dangerous than before.”

Belarus, a staunch Russian ally, has claimed that some of the drones “went astray” due to electronic jamming.

Other NATO members, including Croatia and Romania, have reported Russian airspace incursions in the past.

In sum …

While Poland said the incursions were not a mistake, and rather a clear escalation, Russia denied that its drones would have been able to reach Polish airspace.

Posts that claim Russia launched a systemic “attack” on Poland were misleading in that the drones did not strike specific locations within Poland.

The fact remains that more drones entered Polish airspace than in any previous incursion, which many European leaders have deemed an “act of aggression” on Russia’s part.

Sources