NATO Says Russian Missile Violated Polish Airspace

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at missile incursions into NATO airspace, a potential new front in the Iran war, and the likely winner of Greater Manchester’s mayoral race. ‘Another Reckless Act’ Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting on Thursday to address an overnight missile incursion believed to be of Russian origin. Although Tusk stopped short of directly blaming Moscow, experts said that the projectile appears to be a Russian Kh-101 missile that was launched into eastern Poland during Russia’s overnight strikes on Ukraine. Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at missile incursions into NATO airspace, a potential new front in the Iran war, and the likely winner of Greater Manchester’s mayoral race. ‘Another Reckless Act’ Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting on Thursday to address an overnight missile incursion believed to be of Russian origin. Although Tusk stopped short of directly blaming Moscow, experts said that the projectile appears to be a Russian Kh-101 missile that was launched into eastern Poland during Russia’s overnight strikes on Ukraine. “There was no direct threat because the missile ​landed in an uninhabited area,” Tusk said on Thursday, adding that “we were ready to shoot it down had it continued its flight.” NATO jets had scrambled to intercept the missile before it crashed. Still, the incident has once again raised European concerns about the war spilling over into NATO countries, particularly as Russia intensifies its assault; Moscow’s overnight operation saw dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones primarily target the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv as well as the western city of Lviv, which sits on the border with Poland. At least nine people were killed, including at least three children, and more than 50 others were wounded. Tusk suggested on Thursday that Poland was likely not purposefully targeted. However, NATO chief Mark Rutte warned that even accidents carry grave risks. “This incident is yet another reckless act by Russia and a dangerous consequence of its war against Ukraine,” Rutte wrote on ​X. He condemned Moscow’s overnight strikes and vowed to continue NATO support for Kyiv’s war effort. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha similarly blamed Russia for threatening a wider regional war with its incursion into Poland. “This is yet another clear demonstration that strengthening Ukraine’s air defense now is urgent and serves as a guarantee for the protection of the entire Euro-Atlantic community,” Sybiha wrote on X. Over the past year, NATO members have accused both Russian and Ukrainian forces of launching stray drones, missiles, and aircraft into the airspaces of Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Romania, among others. Last September, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed creating a drone wall to counter such incursions, and in December, Poland unveiled plans to complete a roughly $2.3 billion anti-drone fortification system. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky used Russia’s overnight assault and alleged incursion into Poland to call for more military aid. “All partners know how and with what they can help,” Zelensky wrote on X on Thursday. “Untimely assistance and delays in the delivery of anti-ballistic missiles lead to this ​kind of destruction, these kinds of casualties that, unfortunately, we are seeing today.” Zelensky told Axios on Tuesday that he had asked U.S. President Donald Trump for an emergency “winter package” of Patriot air defense interceptors during their White House meeting that day. Ukraine’s stockpiles are almost depleted, and only U.S. Patriots have the ability to consistently intercept Russian ballistic missiles. During this month’s NATO leaders’ summit, Trump agreed to give Kyiv a license to produce Patriot missiles for itself; however, he ruled out the delivery of more Patriots during the time that it takes Ukraine to begin manufacturing them. Today’s Most Read The Wildberries Theory of Russian Defeat by Alexey Kovalev Netanyahu’s Palestine Philosophy Is Finally Exposed by Assaf Sharon Why Putin Will Escalate by Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon What We’re Following Ever-expanding war. Fighting in the Middle East threatened new fronts on Thursday, after Egypt confirmed that an unidentified drone had struck its Mediterranean port of Damietta the day before. According to Egyptian authorities, the drone hit a U.S.-owned vessel carrying liquified natural gas, sparking a fire that spread onto a second ship. No injuries were reported, and no side has taken responsibility for the attack, though Trump implied on Wednesday that Tehran was responsible. The incident marks the first assault on Egypt since the Iran war began in February, and it comes as both Washington and Tehran are intensifying their operations. According to U.S. Central Command, U.S. forces launched another wave of strikes on dozens of Iranian targets linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps late Wednesday—just hours after the United States carried out joint attacks with Saudi Arabia on Iran-backed militias in Iraq. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry stressed on Thursday that peace talks are still being considered, with Islamabad working to bring both Washington and Tehran to the table. “Negotiations between parties are ongoing, particularly on [the] Strait of Hormuz and to de-escalate,” ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said. An almost guaranteed win. The United Kingdom kicked off its biggest by-election in history on Thursday with a mayoral race for Greater Manchester. Whoever is elected will fill the shoes of Andy Burnham, whose popular tenure running in the northern city helped propel his career to Downing Street—or now, “No. 10 North.” Labour Party candidate Bev Craig is expected to sweep the vote, with recent polling showing her with a 20-percentage-point lead over rival Sian Astley from the far-right Reform UK party. That may be due in part to Burnham’s ambitious first week in office, during which he introduced a slew of new measures aimed at reducing high costs of living and shifting the country’s economic decision-making out of London. Growing Labour popularity would have been unheard of just a few months ago, when the scandal-ridden party suffered a debilitating defeat in local elections. However, Reform UK’s own internal turmoil could also be costing the far right its chance at a Greater Manchester victory. Last month, party leader Nigel Farage was accused of dubious financial arrangements, triggering a parliamentary inquiry. In response, Farage resigned as a member of Parliament representing Clacton to trigger a by-election for his seat, which he planned to compete for again. The party has thus been forced to redirect its focus away from Greater Manchester to ensure that Farage does not lose his former seat to a literal trash can (aka the satirical character Count Binface) on Aug. 13. Perfect fire conditions. Dangerous wildfires spread farther in Southern Europe on Thursday, with Turkey warning of fires burning near several tourist hot spots along the Mediterranean coast, including in the cities of Fethiye, Antalya, and Ayvalik. Meanwhile, Greece continues to battle deadly blazes on several islands as well as the mainland. Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, with experts suggesting that an unusually wet winter followed by an intense summer heat wave have helped create the perfect environmental conditions for fueling wildfires. “We have difficult days ahead of us,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Thursday. Blazes also continue to endanger locals in Spain and France, where residents have spent the past week fleeing massive wildfires. Although Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez ‌downgraded the emergency level for a major fire near Madrid on Thursday, he warned that at least 10 others across the country were cause for concern. And in France, recent wildfires have burned a record-setting 91,024 hectares of land. Odds and Ends Singapore authorities fined a French student $465 on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to a public nuisance charge. In March, Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien filmed himself licking a straw from an orange juice vending machine and putting it back. Although the 19-year-old eventually retrieved the straw before another person could use it, prosecutors accused the social media influencer of undermining confidence in public hygiene. “He is truly sorry for having caused all this trouble,” Maximilien’s lawyer said. The lawyer also noted that the student’s parents will ensure that he pays the fine himself.