UN Security Council discusses Russian drone violation of Polish airspace
The UN Security Council has met at Poland's request to discuss the violation of its airspace by Russian drones.
During the session, US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea, the acting permanent representative, condemned Moscow's actions, saying Washington is ready to defend its NATO allies.
"The US stands with its NATO allies and will defend every inch of NATO territory," Ms Shea said.
The drone incident comes after President Donald Trump suggested it "could have been a mistake." But Polish authorities and several European allies said Moscow's actions were intentional.
"Maybe it was a mistake," Trump had speculated, but Warsaw did not agree with the explanation.
The moves come as NATO announced a major new operation, "Eastern Sentry," to bolster the security of its eastern flank.
"These actions [by Russia], which now include the violation of a NATO member state's airspace, demonstrate an enormous lack of respect for the goodwill shown by the United States to end this conflict—whether they were intentional or not," Ms Shea also stated.
Russia's UN Ambassador Vasili Nebenzia reiterated earlier statements from the Defence Ministry in Moscow, according to which the Russian army did not target objectives in Poland, and the drones' range does not exceed 700 km.
"We have stated many times that we are not interested in escalating tensions with Warsaw. We are repeating this now," Mr Nebenzia was quoted by the TASS news agency.
The EU, the US and more than 40 other countries backed Poland's statement to the UN over the airspace violation. UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo said the incidents clearly demonstrated the "dangerous influence of this war on regional security and the risk of escalation." Meanwhile, Russia was again urged to halt fire in Ukraine, DW reports.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
