The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland has sent a note of protest to the Russian Federation over the incident involving the downing of a drone in Lublin voivodeship, the Polish government’s press service said on 21 August.
“The document states that the incident – the explosion of an unmanned aerial vehicle – is a violation by the Russian Federation of its obligations to respect Poland’s sovereignty arising, in particular, from the Treaty between the Republic of Poland and the Russian Federation on friendly and good-neighbourly cooperation and the Convention on International Civil Aviation,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The diplomatic ministry considers this event “another deliberate provocation”, corresponding to the scheme of hybrid actions resorted to by Russia against Poland and other European countries.
“We strongly condemn all actions of the Russian side that pose a threat to the civilian population, infrastructure and air traffic safety. The Foreign Ministry demands from the Russian side to immediately provide explanations regarding the incident, in particular, the circumstances and reasons for the appearance of the unmanned aerial vehicle on Polish territory,” the press service states.
The Foreign Ministry also demands information from Russia about the actions that the relevant Russian authorities are taking to “prevent similar situations in the future.” Poland calls on Russia to stop hostile and provocative actions and emphasises that the Russian side bears responsibility for their consequences.
“Russia’s hostile actions against Poland are carried out in parallel with its military aggression against Ukraine, which has caused hundreds of thousands of victims and is a flagrant violation of international law and fundamental humanitarian principles,” the ministry said.
A Russian drone fell and exploded in eastern Poland on the night of 20 August, the country’s Defence Minister Vladyslav Kosiniak-Kamysh said. The minister emphasised that” the provocation “occurred” at a critical moment ” – during attempts to reach a ceasefire in Ukraine or even to end the Russian-Ukrainian war.
The drone, according to the Polish PAP news agency, landed in a cornfield in the village of Aspen in the Lublin voivodeship. No people were hurt, but several houses had their windows blown out.
Polish authorities have launched an investigation into the accident. At first it was unclear what kind of object fell into the field. Craters, metal and plastic debris scattered over dozens of metres were found at the site of the explosion. The military said it had not recorded any airspace violations last night.