Poland mulls Kyiv's proposal to shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine
Photo: Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland, Radosław Sikorski (Getty Images)
Warsaw is considering Kyiv's proposal to shoot down Russian missiles headed towards Polish territory while they are still in Ukrainian airspace, states Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski on BBC.
According to him, this proposal was included in the joint defense agreement between the two countries, signed during President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Warsaw earlier this week.
"At this stage, this is an idea. What our agreement said is we will explore this idea," Sikorski said at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
He specifically recalled incidents where some Russian missiles, launched from the St. Petersburg area towards Ukrainian targets near the city of Lviv in western Ukraine, close to the Polish border, crossed Belarus and entered Polish airspace for about 40 seconds before returning to their targets back in Ukraine. He also acknowledged that such a brief interval gave Warsaw little time to react. However, the proposal theoretically covers any missile heading through western Ukraine towards Poland.
"Our dilemma is the following. If we shoot them down only when they enter our airspace the debris is a threat to our citizens and to our property," Sikorski said.
Nevertheless, he noted that Ukrainians are not opposed to Poland shooting down missiles over their territory. In his opinion, this can be considered "self-defense," but for now, it is just an idea being explored.
Sikorski also mentioned that in December 2022, a Russian missile fell near his home in Bydgoszcz, about 500 km from the Belarusian border, causing no harm. A month earlier, two Polish citizens were killed by falling debris when Ukraine shot down a Russian missile near the Polish border.
Background on Poland's idea to shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine
Recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine and Poland are working on a mechanism for Polish air defense to shoot down Russian missiles and drones over Ukrainian territory.
Later this week, Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said that Warsaw would consult with its NATO allies and seek their approval before attempting to shoot down any Russian missiles.
For more details on this initiative and whether it could be implemented soon, read a special article by RBC-Ukraine.
