Retired Polish Army General Mieczyslaw Benek said that the entry of drones into Polish airspace does not constitute the start of a war, the national news agency PAP reported, quoted by BTA.
General Benek, former deputy commander of NATO's Strategic Command and advisor to the Polish defense minister, commented on the midnight violation of Polish airspace. During a Russian air attack on Ukraine, Polish airspace was violated by drones several times.
“This was a check by the Russian side to see if our system works and how it works“, the military said. The general assessed the response of the Polish services so far as “very effective and good“. "As soon as we received a signal about the drone's entry, we activated the system, we deployed all the possible means at our disposal. Then we brought aircraft into the operational area and into their duty zones. We activated the air control systems and the aircraft with the ability to refuel in the air. This means that there was a constant presence," he explained.
“We also warned the civil authorities to close their airspace so that no aircraft could take off from airports in the east, such as those in Warsaw, Modlin, Rzeszow and Lublin.“ “ “It is not that there was an attack on these airports - no, this attack was not directed at the airports“, he pointed out.
At the same time, the general admitted, “Unfortunately, we still have a lot to improve“. “Conclusions will probably be drawn and we will react“, he added.
“I want to calm the residents and some of the heated commentators who say that this is already a war. No, this is not a war. This is a hybrid war that has been going on for two years. These are arson attempts, this is disinformation, this is a war in cyberspace. And one of the elements is disinformation and pointing the finger at the wrong enemy. The enemy is not in the West, the enemy is in the East“, General Benek pointed out.
He also commented on the decision regarding the formal request to activate NATO's Article 4. “Consultations are being held within the framework of this article. Allied forces have been activated, we have notified all NATO countries, all allied countries. Of course, the formal application of Article 4 will significantly increase combat readiness to perform tasks“, he assessed.