Poland and about 40 of its allies on Friday denounced the intrusion of Russian drones into its airspace this week, calling on Moscow to avoid further ‘provocations.’
‘We are here to express our grave concern and to draw the attention of the international community to yet another flagrant violation of international law and the Charter of the United Nations committed by the Russian Federation,’ Polish deputy foreign minister Marcin Bosacki told reporters before an emergency meeting of the Security Council requested by his country.
‘Russia’s reckless actions represent not only a breach of international law but also a destabilising escalation that brings the entire region closer to conflict than at any time in recent years,’ he read from a statement signed by about 40 countries, including the 26 other members of the European Union, Ukraine, the United States, Japan and Canada.
‘We take this opportunity to reiterate our call on the Russian Federation to immediately cease its war of aggression against Ukraine, to renounce any further provocations, and to respect its obligations under the UN Charter,’ he said. ‘Escalation cannot lead to peace.’
Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said Warsaw was closer to ‘open conflict’ than at any point since World War II after Poland and its NATO allies scrambled jets to down Russian drones violating its airspace early Wednesday.
Russia denied targeting Poland.