Russia blitz is blamed for missile ‘accident’
But leaders & NATO cool tensions
THE STRAY missile that killed two people in Poland was likely from a Ukrainian air-defence system reacting to Russia’s air-strike campaign, it has been claimed.
World leaders dialled down fears of a direct confrontation with Russia, while piling blame on Moscow for the attacks that prompted the accident.
Ukrainian air defences had to shoot down scores of Russian missiles on Tuesday as about 100 cities were hit, a record since war broke out.
Polish president Andrzej Duda said of the strike on Przewodow, four miles inside Poland: “We have no proof at this point to suggest the missile was fired by the Russian side.
“Ukraine’s defence was launching their missiles in various directions and it is highly probable that one of these unfortunately fell on Polish territory.”
His comments were echoed by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who said a “preliminary analysis” suggested it was a Ukrainian air defence missile fired to defend against the barrage of cruise missiles.
Speaking after a meeting of alliance ambassadors in Brussels, he added: “But let me be clear, this is not Ukraine’s fault. Russia bears ultimate responsibility as it continues its illegal war against Ukraine.”
Ukraine authorities have asked for access to the site, with Oleksiy Danilov, head of its National Security and Defence Council, calling for a “joint examination of the incident”.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz echoed other leaders in blaming Russia, saying: “This wouldn’t have happened without the Russian war against Ukraine, without the missiles now being fired at Ukrainian infrastructure intensively and on a large scale.”
A deliberate attack on Poland would have required a joint NATO response and the risk of war with Russia.
The news of the strike prompted US President Joe Biden to summon a meeting of G7 and NATO leaders in Bali amid fears of heightened aggression.
Despite the world leaders’ stance, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday remained adamant that, based on his country’s military reports, it was a Russian missile which hit Poland and is “a very significant escalation”.
But the Russian defence ministry claimed that blaming them was a “deliberate provocation”.