World

Russian Missile Kills 2 In NATO Member Poland; Joe Biden Says "Unlikely" That The Strike Was Carried Out By Russia

Swarajya Staff

Nov 16, 2022, 10:27 AM | Updated 01:26 PM IST


Poland
Poland

According to Polish foreign ministry spokesman Lukasz Jasina, a Russian-made missile landed in Poland on Tuesday, November 15, and killed two people in the village of Przewodow. "A Russian-made missile fell, killing two citizens of the Republic of Poland," he said. Poland has summoned the Russian ambassador to give "immediate detailed explanations".

Russia has been targeting Ukraine's energy facilities with its biggest barrage of missiles yet, striking targets across the country and causing blackouts. Cities that have avoided the burnt of the war, such as the Western city of Lviv, were targeted as well. Meanwhile in Bali, Russia's foreign minister apparently left the G20 summit. 

Poland held an emergency national security council meeting in Warsaw after the Russian missile landed in Poland. The meeting has now concluded and Poland has decided to "raise the state of readiness of some combat units and other uniformed services," according to Polish government spokesman Piotr Mueller. 

All prominent world leaders are in Bali right now. US President Joe Biden convened an emergency meeting of G7 nations and NATO leaders today morning, to discuss the Russian missile strike. Joe Biden said it was "unlikely" that the missile was fired by Russia. He did not indicate who fired it or if it was an accident. 

It is worth noting that Ukraine still maintains stocks of former Soviet and Russian-made weaponary, including the S-300 air-defense missile system.

The US and its allies have decided to investigate the strike in Poland before taking any further decision.  "We agreed to support Poland's investigation into the explosion," Biden said. "We're going to make sure we figure out exactly what happened... and then we're going to collectively determine our next step," he added. 

The explosion in Poland, a NATO member, immediately sparked concerns that the alliance might be drawn into Russia's nearly nine-month war against Western-backed Ukraine. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is also in Bali, warned it was "absolutely essential to avoid escalating the war in Ukraine." 

Poland's President Andrzej Duda also urged calm, and claimed there was no "unequivocal evidence" for where the missile came from and that he saw it as an "isolated" incident. "Nothing indicates to us that there will be more," he added.

The foreign ministry earlier summoned Russia's ambassador to Warsaw to give "immediate detailed explanations" over the strike, which Moscow has denied launching. Poland is now expected to request urgent consultations under Article 4 of the NATO Treaty, which is invoked when any NATO member feels their "territorial integrity, political independence or security" are at risk.

The strikes drew widespread condemnation, with European Union chief Charles Michel saying he was "shocked". He said he would call an emergency meeting of EU leaders at the G20 summit as he assured Poland's premier of the bloc's support after the deadly blast.

It is almost a certainty that Article 5 won't be triggered. There is some speculation that the missile that landed in Poland, landed by accident or that it was launched by some nation other than Russia. Meanwhile, Russia's strikes on Ukraine are affecting power supply in Moldova as well. The missile strikes have reportedly taken out power lines that supply energy to Moldova. It is estimated that 40 percent of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been destroyed. 

Ukrainian President Zelensky said "We're working, will restore everything. We will survive everything."


Get Swarajya in your inbox.


Magazine


image
States