Russian Drones Over Poland
Poland Invokes Article 4 in Response to Airspace Violation
A Russian violation of Polish airspace on the night of 9-10 September 2025 has caused Poland to invoke Article 4 of NATO, requiring a consultation between member states to decide whether the sovereignty or political independence of any member state has been violated. This is not the first violation of NATO airspace since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022 and was followed by a violation of Romanian airspace two days later.
Incident Report
An estimated 19-23 Russian military drones crossed into Polish airspace from the Ukrainian and Belarussian borders from 23:30 to 06:45 CEST from 9 to 10 September. Two Polish F-16s and two Dutch F-35s were deployed in response to the airspace violation. Poland’s eastern airspace was also temporarily closed, and flights were rerouted from Warsaw airport.
Poland ordered the downing of Russian drones, of which at least three were shot down. The remains of at least fifteen drones have additionally been identified in Polish territory. No official report has been issued concerning the drones’ models as of the time of writing. BBC Verify analysts identified Gerbera decoy UAVs as being among those which had crossed into Polish airspace. Analysts suggested that “Moscow typically uses [Gerbera decoys] in conjunction with Shahed/Geran-2 drones when launching attacks on Ukrainian troops and cities.” BBC Verify’s analysts further suggested that the deployment of drones may have served the purpose of identifying “weak points” in NATO/Polish defense. None of the identified drones were carrying an explosive payload or reconnaissance unit.
No casualties were reported as a result of the event, though residential areas sustained damage. On Wednesday the 10th, Polish PM Donald Tusk requested the invocation of NATO’s Article 4.
Article 4 and Operation Eastern Sentry
NATO’s article 4 stipulates that “Parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened.” It is separate from Article 5, which states that “Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all…”
Referencing a UN Security Council meeting that took place on 12 September, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has called the incident “the first violation of Poland’s territorial integrity on such an unprecedented, massive scale since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022” and claimed that “Russia orchestrated this provocation deliberately.” NATO leaders expressed solidarity with Poland following the incident while Russia’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) denied the incident. The Russian MoD later declared it was “prepared to hold consultations with the Polish Defence Ministry on this topic.”
NATO responded by launching Operation Eastern Sentry, “a military activity aimed to bolster NATO’s posture along the eastern flank” on 12 September. Italy, France, Denmark, and Germany have committed aircraft to the effort alongside Danish anti-air and Italian missile systems. The operation is to begin immediately without a determined end date for the time being.