The president of Poland and NATO’s secretary-general said that the missiles that hit Poland, killing two on Tuesday, were not an attack from Russia.
A senior U.S. intelligence official told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Russian missiles had allegedly crossed into Poland during a strike against Ukraine’s energy facilities, the Deseret News reported.
After further assessment from Poland and NATO, it was determined that the missile was actually an air defense launched by Ukraine to protect the country’s power grid from the Russian attacks.
NATO and Poland’s response to Polish missile attack
“Ukraine’s defense was launching their missiles in various directions and it is highly probable that one of these missiles unfortunately fell on Polish territory,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said, per The Associated Press. “There is nothing, absolutely nothing, to suggest that it was an intentional attack on Poland.”
“We have no indication that this was the result of a deliberate attack,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg agreed.
The secretary-general emphasized that Ukraine was not at fault because it was defending itself from Russian attacks, according to The New York Times.
“This is not Ukraine’s fault. Russia bears ultimate responsibility,” Stoltenberg said.
Biden’s response to the Polish missile attack
Prior to NATO and Poland’s assessment, President Joe Biden said it was “unlikely” that Russia had fired the missile, according to BBC News.
Russia’s response to the Polish missile attack
A spokesman for the Kremlin commented on Biden’s response, calling it a “restrained, much more professional reaction.”
“We have witnessed another hysterical, frenzied, Russophobic reaction that was not based on any real data,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to The Associated Press. “Immediately, all experts realized that it could not have been a missile linked to the Russian armed forces.”