WHAT WE KNOW NOW. Russia denies reports that Russian missiles landed in Poland: ‘Deliberate provocation’ | War Ukraine and Russia

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, no Russian attacks have been carried out on targets near the Ukrainian border with Poland. This is reported by the Russian state news agency TASS.

According to the local fire brigade, the explosions would have happened in Przewodow, a village in eastern Poland, close to the border with Ukraine. “The fire brigade is on site, it is not yet clear what exactly happened,” said Lukasz Kucy, the duty officer at a nearby fire station.

Meanwhile, Polish media are reporting that it may be debris from a Russian missile that was allegedly hit by Ukrainian forces.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has called an emergency meeting of the National Security Council, government spokesman Piotr Müller said. The council includes the ministers of Justice, the Interior and Foreign Affairs and the coordinator of the secret services.

Müller did not explain exactly why the prime minister had requested the emergency session. During a short press conference, the government spokesman said that President Andrzej Duda was also aware of the meeting. Müller only referred to a “crisis situation”. He also urged not to publish any unconfirmed information pending official communication.

Poland is also placing part of its armed forces on high alert. That says a government spokesman. Polish President Andrzej Duda has already been in contact with US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

Hungary has also convened its Security Council. Latvian Defense Minister Artis Pabriks, for his part, says NATO could provide Poland with air defense as well as “part of Ukraine’s territory”. “Whether it was done on purpose or by accident, this is unacceptable,” he tweeted.

Germany and the Netherlands have already announced that they are closely monitoring the situation and are in contact with Poland and the other NATO members. Norway, Lithuania and Estonia also say they are closely monitoring the situation. “Every inch of NATO territory must be defended,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said on Twitter. European President Charles Michel also expressed his support for Poland there.

Belgium also responded and did so through our Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open Vld). “Belgium strongly condemns the incident on Polish territory and expresses its deepest condolences to the families of the victims and to the people of Poland. Belgium stands behind Poland. We are all part of the NATO family that is more united than ever and equipped to protect us all,” he wrote on Twitter. In front of the VTM NEWS camera, the prime minister also called for calm.

LOOK. Prime Minister De Croo calls on people to keep calm: “No indication that there is any danger in our country”.

NATO says it is investigating reports of the deadly explosion in Poland. “We are investigating these reports and are coordinating closely with our alliance partner Poland,” a NATO official told Germany’s DPA news agency tonight.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks of a “significant escalation” of the conflict. “The longer Russia feels impunity, the more threat there will be to anyone within range of Russian missiles. Firing missiles into NATO territory! This is a Russian missile strike on collective security! This is a very important escalation. We must act,’ he said.

Professor of international politics David Criekmans (UAntwerp) emphasizes that we do not yet know exactly what happened. “One or more missiles probably landed on Polish territory and there would be one or two deaths,” he tells HLN LIVE.

“At the moment we are based on hypotheses,” he continues. “A stray missile from Ukrainian territory is one possible scenario. There are certain ‘rules of procedure’ that ensure that the Polish government, in cooperation with NATO, will first try to identify the cause and the location from which the missiles were fired. Information is currently being collected to determine whether this was intentional or unintentional. That is the central question. An unintentional human error is one possible scenario.”

According to Criekmans, the Secretary General of NATO will probably appeal tomorrow to keep all peace and will confirm that all NATO countries will support Poland. “He will say that all information is being collected to find out what happened and there may be an additional request from the Polish government for anti-aircraft missiles to defend their territory.”