Allies advise us to be restrained – Polish PM on downing drones above Poland

Donald Tusk, Prime Minister of Poland, has stated that when it comes to the issue of downing Russian missiles or drones above the territory of Poland, it is often hard to determine right away whether it is a civilian object or not, so the allies of Warsaw ask it to be restrained.

Source: Tusk at a press conference on 28 August, as reported by European Pravda with reference to Rzeczpospolita

Details: Tusk was asked whether the Polish government was ready to change the law in order to facilitate the downing of the objects, which enter the Polish airspace during Russian large-scale attacks targeting, among other things, the west of Ukraine.

At the moment, the procedure requires that General Maciej Klisz, Commander of the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces, give permission to down such an object in peacetime.

Tusk replied that he was "open" to the change in the rules, "and we can change the rules as soon as possible", but then specified that "the problem with downed aircraft often has a different nature".

"Often, it's the split second that makes it impossible to check whether it's a civilian object. Or whether it is a lost aircraft," he added.

Tusk added that "our allies recommend some restraint" when it comes to shooting down unidentified aerial objects "if there is no threat, if it’s not aggression".

"I highly value the smart and balanced position of our military. They are not interested in opening fire every time something moves in the sky. We feel more secure this way," Tusk believes.

Background:

• On 27 August, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that he wanted Warsaw to help Ukraine with downing missiles over the western part of Ukraine heading towards Poland.
• The Polish Defence Minister has already stated that the decision to allow Russian missiles and combat drones to be shot down in Ukrainian airspace using Polish air defence systems has been met with scepticism among NATO countries.

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