World leaders hold an emergency meeting as a “Russian-made” missile kills two in Poland

CNN
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World leaders meeting at the G20 summit in Bali are trying to defuse a possible escalation in Ukraine’s months-long war after a “Russian-made” missile fell into NATO member Poland, killing two people.

The missile fell outside the rural Polish village of Przyodo, about four miles (6.4 kilometers) west of the Ukrainian border on Tuesday, around the same time the Russian launch. The largest wave of missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in more than a month.

The circumstances surrounding the incident, which marked the first time a NATO country suffered a direct hit during the nearly nine-month conflict, remain unclear. It is not known who fired the missile or where it was launched from, although the Polish Foreign Ministry described it as “Russian-made”.

Russian and Ukrainian forces have used Russian-made munitions during the conflict, with Ukraine deploying Russian-made missiles as part of its air defense system.

Speaking to reporters after holding an emergency meeting with the leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations and NATO on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, US President Joe Biden said preliminary information indicated that it was “unlikely” that the missile was launched from inside Russia, but he was unable to. So. I say emphatically until the investigation is complete.

“We agreed to support Poland’s investigation into the explosion … and I’ll make sure I find out exactly what happened,” Biden said, adding that the leaders had shown sympathy over the two deaths. Then we will collectively determine our next step as we investigate and follow through. There was complete unanimity among the people at the table.

Biden said he briefed others gathered on his discussions with Polish President Andrzej Duda and with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

In remarks earlier Tuesday, Duda indicated that while it was not clear who fired the missile, it was “most likely” produced in Russia. “We are working quietly, in a very quiet way,” Duda said during a speech from the National Security Office in Warsaw.

The Kremlin denied involvement in the blast, and the Russian Defense Ministry called the Polish media reports, which first reported the deaths, “a deliberate provocation in order to escalate the situation,” according to a short statement issued late Tuesday.

It added that the pictures of the wreckage published by Polish media “from the site of the village of Przyodo have nothing to do with Russian weapons.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told CNN he had no information about an explosion in Poland.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Tuesday that the evidence indicated that the rocket that landed in Przewodow was a “lonely act” and there was no evidence of further rocket attacks.

But while urging calm, Morawiecki said Poland and the Bold are increasing their military readiness and considering activating Article 4 of the NATO treaty. Article 4 is a method of consultation that allows members of the 30-nation alliance to bring up an issue — usually security-related — for debate in the North Atlantic Council, its decision-making body.

Whatever the outcome of the Polish-led investigation, the incident reinforced long-standing concerns about the risk of miscalculation on the battlefield leading to conflict between NATO and Russia.

A witness to the blast described hearing a terrifying “sound” as the shell flew over the town and the force of the blast shook nearby windows.

A video taken by a resident, geolocated and confirmed by CNN, shows a large plume of smoke in the center of the village.

At the site of the explosion, local media showed a picture of a crater and an overturned agricultural vehicle. CNN cannot independently confirm the images.

Duda said in his speech that the US will send experts to investigate the site as part of a joint operation.

Speaking after a phone call with Duda on Tuesday, NATO chief Stoltenberg said it was “important to prove all the facts.”

“I offered my condolences for the loss of life. NATO is monitoring the situation and consulting allies closely. It is important to establish all the facts,” Stoltenberg said in a statement.