Russia carries out massive overnight on Ukraine, Poland on high alert after Russian airstrikes near its border

Following a massive overnight assault by Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Saturday that a large-scale drone and missile attack had resulted in three deaths and dozens of injuries.

In a statement shared on the Telegram app, Zelenskiy detailed that Russia had launched approximately 580 drones and 40 missiles, targeting a variety of sites including civilian infrastructure, manufacturing facilities, and residential areas throughout the country.

The president condemned the attacks as a “deliberate strategy by Russia to terrorize civilians and destroy our infrastructure” rather than a military necessity. The assaults, which reportedly occurred in two waves, prompted air raid alerts that lasted for about 11 hours in some regions. Ukraine’s air defense forces successfully intercepted 552 drones and 31 missiles.

Due to the proximity of the attacks to the border, with strikes hitting western Ukraine, Poland and its allied aircraft were deployed to secure Polish airspace, according to a statement from the Polish military command.

Zelenskiy renewed his call for more support from Ukraine’s Western allies, urging them to provide additional air defense systems and impose stricter sanctions on Russia. He concluded by stating, “Ukraine has proven it can defend itself and Europe, but for a reliable shield, we must act together.”

Poland on high alert after Russian airstrikes near its border

Poland put NATO’s air defence systems on full alert and scrambled Polish and allied aircraft in the early hours of the morning following Russian air attacks in western Ukraine, in an area very close to the Polish border.

The operational command of the General Staff announced on X that “Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, while land-based air defence systems and radars have been placed at the highest level of recognition.”

At around 6:40 a.m. local time, an alert had been declared across almost all of Ukraine for a massive drone and missile attack.

The incident is part of a climate of escalation in recent days. The Estonian government reported on Friday (19/9) that three Russian MiG-31s violated its airspace for 12 minutes. The Russian Ministry of Defence rejected the accusations, claiming that the aircraft were on a planned flight from Karelia to the Kaliningrad region without entering the airspace of a neighbouring country.

In response, Italian F-35s from NATO’s air defence mission in the Baltic countries scrambled for an interception, while Sweden and Finland also activated quick-reaction fighter jets, according to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE).

NATO announced that the North Atlantic Council would meet early next week to discuss the incident, while Estonia is calling for the activation of Article 4 of the Alliance.

In recent months, multiple Russian drone violations of Romanian and Polish airspace have been recorded, with Western officials believing that Moscow is testing NATO’s readiness and determination.