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The explosion at the village of Przewodow left a massive crater [Social media via Reuters]
By Ali Harb, Federica Marsi and Kate Mayberry
Published On 15 Nov 2022
  • Poland has said a “Russian-made” missile hit the eastern village of Przewodow near the border with Ukraine, killing two people.
  • US President Joe Biden says early information suggests the explosion might not have been caused by a missile fired from Russia.
16 Nov 2022 - 04:31
 (04:31 GMT)

Blinken, Kuleba discuss Poland blast, attacks on Ukraine

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has discussed the Poland blast and the wave of attacks on multiple cities across Ukraine with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

The two discussed “Ukraine’s needs, including for energy security and air defense”, the US State Department said in a statement, noting that Tuesday’s raids had targeted crucial energy infrastructure.

“They also discussed ongoing assessments of an explosion that took two lives in Poland, and they pledged to remain closely coordinated in the coming days.”

16 Nov 2022 - 04:20
 (04:20 GMT)

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador points to crater size over Poland blast claims

Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations has pointed to the size of the crater left by the blast in Poland as evidence that it could not have been a direct rocket strike.

“It’s obvious that impact of direct rocket strike would be significantly bigger than the pictures show,” he wrote on Twitter.

The UN Security Council is due to meet on the situation in Ukraine later on Wednesday. Kyiv has blamed Russia for the explosion, which came as multiple cities across Ukraine came under Russian missile attack but Poland has been more cautious, saying it was a probably a “Russian-made missile”.

Al Jazeera’s UN correspondent James Bays says while the events in Poland are not the reason for the meeting they are likely to be a key point of discussion.

16 Nov 2022 - 04:06
 (04:06 GMT)

NATO, G7 countries to remain ‘in close touch’ over Poland blast

NATO and G7 countries have wrapped up their emergency meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali.

They say they will remain in close contact to decide on any possible reaction to the blast in Poland.

The government there has said the explosion was probably the result of a “Russian-made missile” but that there was no evidence yet to determine where it had come from.

“We agree to remain in close touch to determine appropriate next steps as the investigation proceeds,” leaders of Canada, the EU, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, the UK and US said in a joint statement.

“We offer our full support for and assistance with Poland’s ongoing investigation,” the statement added.

US President Joe Biden spoke to the media after the blast in Poland and said preliminary indications suggested it might not have been fired from Russia [Kevin Lamarque/Reuters]
16 Nov 2022 - 03:20
 (03:20 GMT)

UN chief Antonio Guterres ‘very concerned’ at Poland explosion reports

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “very concerned” at the reports of the missile explosion in Poland.

Deputy UN Spokesperson Farhan Haq said in a statement that Guterres hopes a thorough investigation will be conducted.

“It is absolutely essential to avoid escalating the war in Ukraine,” Haq said.

16 Nov 2022 - 02:28
 (02:28 GMT)

Poland blast might not have been missile fired from Russia: Biden

Some developments coming out of Bali…

The US president has said early information suggests the explosion in Poland might not have been caused by a missile fired from Russia.

Asked about claims that it was linked to Russia, Biden said: “There is preliminary information that contests that. I don’t want to say that until we completely investigate it but it is unlikely in the lines of the trajectory that it was fired from Russia but we’ll see.”

He said the US and NATO will investigate fully before acting.

16 Nov 2022 - 02:18
 (02:18 GMT)

What are NATO’s Article 4 and Article 5?

There has been a lot of talk in the past few hours about NATO’s Articles 4 and 5, which form part of the alliance’s 1949 founding treaty.

It is important to note that NATO makes its decisions “by consensus after discussion and consultation“.

Article 4

Under Article 4, member countries can bring an issue to the attention of NATO’s political decision-making body and discuss it with its allies in the grouping,

The article states:

“The 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.”

In effect it is a preparatory article for Article 5 and has been used seven times since NATO was founded. A number of east European members, including Poland, requested consultations on February 24 after Russia invaded Ukraine. Turkey also invoked Article 4 a number of times.

Article 5

Article 5 represents NATO’s commitment to collective defence.

“The 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 and consequently they agree that, if such an armed attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or collective self-defence recognised by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.

Any such armed attack and all measures taken as a result thereof shall immediately be reported to the Security Council. Such measures shall be terminated when the Security Council has taken the measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security”.

16 Nov 2022 - 02:00
 (02:00 GMT)

NATO, global leaders meet in emergency session at Bali G20

As we have mentioned, leaders from the world’s 20 biggest economies are in Bali for the G20 summit and some of them are now huddled in a special session to discuss the Poland blast.

US President Joe Biden convened the meeting and he was pictured sitting around a conference table with leaders from countries including Canada, France, Germany and Italy. Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is also taking part although Japan is not a NATO member.

Officials have not said how long the meeting will last.

Biden said “no” when reporters asked whether he could share what he knows about the explosion. He did not comment when asked about possible Russian involvement.

16 Nov 2022 - 00:35
 (00:35 GMT)

NATO allies offer support as Poland investigates blast

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in Bali for the G20 meeting, says he has spoken to the Polish president and will “coordinate” with NATO allies.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said earlier that the UK was looking “urgently” into what had happened.

European Council President Charles Michel has also been on Twitter to express his condolences to the families of the dead.

“Shocked by the news of a missile or other ammunition having killed people on Polish territory,” he wrote.

16 Nov 2022 - 00:00
 (00:00 GMT)

No concrete evidence on who fired missile: Duda

Poland’s president has told reporters there is no concrete evidence – as yet – indicating who fired the missile.

“We do not have any conclusive evidence at the moment as to who launched this missile… it was most likely a Russian-made missile, but this is all still under investigation at the moment,” Duda said.

15 Nov 2022 - 23:52
 (23:52 GMT)

More air defence support likely in wake of missile incident: Expert

Sam Ramani, an international security expert at RUSI in the UK, has told Al Jazeera he expects NATO will step up military aid for Ukraine – in particular air defence systems – in the wake of Tuesday night’s incident.

“The US is likely to take the lead and the others will follow,” Ramani said. NATO countries are also likely to organise more military exercises and drills as a way of showing resolve, he added.

Noting Poland’s reluctance to point the finger at Russia, Ramani said it was “unlikely to push immediately for Article 5” and that it did not seem the incident “met the threshold” for action.

NATO also requires unanimity on such a decision and countries such as Hungary remain close to Russia.

 

15 Nov 2022 - 22:55
 (22:55 GMT)

NATO member Latvia calls emergency meeting

The Latvian government has called an emergency meeting to assess the security situation following the explosion in Poland, Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said.

“I have called an emergency government meeting to listen to the reports of the responsible ministries and institutions on the security situation in the region and to be ready for further action,” he tweeted.

The meeting is scheduled for 08:00 GMT on Wednesday.

“Latvia and its NATO allies are ready for any situation to defend their citizens and territories,” Karins added.

15 Nov 2022 - 22:38
 (22:38 GMT)

Kremlin spokesman says he has no information on blast

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said he has no information on the explosion in Poland.

“Unfortunately, I have no information on this,” Peskov said in response to a question from the Reuters news agency.

15 Nov 2022 - 22:32
 (22:32 GMT)

Poland checking if it needs to request NATO consultations

Poland’s government has said it is verifying if it needs to request consultations under Article 4 of the NATO treaty over the unconfirmed reports that Russian missiles hit Polish territory.

“A moment ago we decided to verify whether there are grounds to launch procedures under Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty,” government spokesman Piotr Muller told reporters.

Article 4 allows NATO members to bring any issue of concern, especially regarding security, for discussion at the North Atlantic Council.

Muller also said Poland was increasing the readiness of some military units but declined to take any questions, including about the cause of the incident.

15 Nov 2022 - 22:25
 (22:25 GMT)

UK foreign minister says London ‘urgently’ looking into reports

The United Kingdom’s Foreign Minister, James Cleverly, has said London is “urgently” looking into the reports out of Poland.

“We are urgently looking into reports of missiles landing in Poland, and are in contact with our Polish friends and NATO allies,” Cleverly wrote on Twitter.

Earlier, he condemned what he called Russia’s “callous targeting of Ukrainian cities”, saying the missile attacks show Putin’s weakness.

15 Nov 2022 - 22:20
 (22:20 GMT)

EU leader proposes ‘coordination meeting’ for leaders at G20

European Council President Charles Michel has said he will propose a “coordination meeting” for EU leaders attending the G20 summit in Indonesia.

Michel also said he spoke with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and “assured him of full EU unity and solidarity in support of Poland”.

15 Nov 2022 - 22:17
 (22:17 GMT)

Biden briefed on situation, spoke with Poland’s Duda

Biden has been “briefed” on the situation in Poland and spoke by phone with his Polish counterpart Duda, the White House said in a statement.

The US president – who often says the US would defend “every inch” of NATO territory – is in Bali, Indonesia, for the G20 summit.

15 Nov 2022 - 21:56
 (21:56 GMT)

US, NATO investigating reports of Russian missiles in Poland

Top US and NATO officials have said they are looking into reports of Russian missiles falling in Poland, adding that they are consulting with partners on the next steps.

Read more here.

15 Nov 2022 - 21:39
 (21:39 GMT)

US congresswoman calls for calm

US Congresswoman Elaine Luria has urged calm amid calls to invoke NATO’s collective defence pact, Article 5.

“Those calling for NATO to invoke Article 5 after the attack in Poland, do not understand NATO and should not be taken seriously. Russia is losing the war, and unless this was a deliberate attack, calm is required,” Luria wrote on Twitter.

15 Nov 2022 - 21:30
 (21:30 GMT)

NATO ‘monitoring the situation’, chief says

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has said he offered condolences to Polish President Andrzej Duda after the deadly explosions in the east of the country, adding that the alliance is “monitoring the situation”.

“Important that all facts are established,” Stoltenberg wrote on Twitter.

15 Nov 2022 - 21:22
 (21:22 GMT)

Ukraine’s Kuleba calls for ‘tough’ collective response to Russia

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has called for a NATO summit that would include Ukraine to issue a “tough” collective response to Russia over the reports of Moscow’s missiles landing in Poland.

He also urged Kyiv’s allies to provide the country with advanced weaponry and aircraft.

“Today, protecting Ukraine’s skies means protecting NATO,” Kuleba wrote on Twitter.