Poland has asked its NATO allies to provide additional air defense systems and counter-drone technology to better protect its territory from potential Russian incursions, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The Netherlands has already announced it will send Poland two Patriot air defense systems, counter-drone equipment, and 300 troops by the end of 2025. The Czech government pledged to deliver three Mi-171Sh helicopters, saying they would “help the Polish army defend the country against low-flying drones.”
U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey said London would assess how it could support Poland after the drone incident. A Bloomberg source familiar with the talks said Britain is considering returning at least some of the six Typhoon fighter jets that were stationed in Poland until six weeks ago as part of NATO’s air policing mission.
Polish foreign minister Radosław Sikorski said after the incursion that Poland needs Patriot systems. “Drones aren’t the only form of the Russian threat to our airspace,” he noted.
About 20 Russian drones entered Polish airspace on the night of September 9–10, during a large-scale Russian strike on Ukraine. Polish fighter jets were scrambled, and for the first time, Russian drones were shot down over NATO territory. Russia’s Defense Ministry later said it hadn’t been targeting Poland.
Polish officials believe the incursion was a deliberate provocation. A senior diplomat from a NATO member state told Bloomberg the drones’ entry was intentional. NATO, however, does not consider the incident an attack, a source from the alliance told Reuters.
