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Biden: ‘Emergency’ meeting after missile hits Poland

Biden: ‘Emergency’ meeting after missile hits Poland

Newslooks- NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AP)

President Joe Biden called an “emergency” meeting of G7 and NATO leaders in Indonesia Wednesday morning for consultations after NATO-ally Poland said a “Russian-made” missile killed two people in the eastern part of its country near the Ukraine border.

Biden, who was awakened overnight by staff with the news of the missile explosion, called Polish President Andrzej Duda early Wednesday to express his “deep condolences” for the loss of life. The U.S. president promised “full U.S support for and assistance with Poland’s investigation,” and “reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to NATO.”

Polish President Andrzej Duda delivers a speech during the ceremony marking the Polish Army Day in Warsaw, Poland, Monday, Aug. 15, 2022. The Polish president and other officials marked their nation’s Armed Forces Day holiday Monday alongside the U.S. army commander in Europe and regular American troops, a symbolic underlining of NATO support for members on the eastern front as Russia wages war nearby in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Michal Dyjuk)

A statement from the Polish Foreign Ministry identified the missile as being made in Russia. But Poland’s president, Duda, was more cautious about its origin, saying that officials did not know for sure who fired it or where it was made. He said it was “most probably” Russian-made, but that is being still verified. If confirmed, it would be the first time since the invasion of Ukraine that a Russian weapon came down on a NATO country.

The foundation of the NATO alliance is the principle that an attack against one member is an attack on them all.

Poland: Russian-made missile fell on our country, killing 2

Newslooks- KYIV, Ukraine (AP)

Poland said early Wednesday that a Russian-made missile fell in the eastern part of the country, killing two people in a blast that marked the first time since the invasion of Ukraine that Russian weapons came down on a NATO country.

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy decried the strike as “a very significant escalation” of the war.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the government was investigating and raising its military preparedness.

Police officers gather outside a grain depot in Przewodow, eastern Poland, on Tuesday Nov. 15, 2022 where the Polish Foreign Ministry said that a Russian-made missile fell and killed two people. The ministry said Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau summoned the Russian ambassador and “demanded immediate detailed explanations.” (AP Photo)

A statement from the Polish Foreign Ministry identified the missile as being made in Russia. But President Andrzej Duda was more cautious about its origin, saying that officials did not know for sure who fired it or where it was made. He said it was “most probably” Russian-made but that is being still verified.

“We are acting with calm,” Duda said. “This is a difficult situation.”

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called an emergency meeting for later in the day of the alliance’s envoys to discuss the events close to the Ukrainian border in Poland.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg speaks as he meets the media during a press conference at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)

The U.N. Security Council also planned to meet Wednesday for a previously scheduled briefing on the situation in Ukraine. The strike in Poland was certain to be raised.

In their statements, Poland and NATO used language that suggested they were not treating the missile blast as a Russian attack, at least for now.

Poland’s statement did not address the circumstances of the strike, including whether it could have been a targeting error or if the missile could have been knocked off course by Ukrainian defenses. A NATO statement called it a “tragic incident.”

Police officers gather outside a grain depot in Przewodow, eastern Poland, on Tuesday Nov. 15, 2022 where the Polish Foreign Ministry said that a Russian-made missile fell and killed two people. The ministry said Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau summoned the Russian ambassador and “demanded immediate detailed explanations.” (AP Photo)

If Russia had deliberately targeted Poland, it would risk drawing the 30-nation alliance into the conflict at a time when it is already struggling to fend off Ukrainian forces.

Polish media reported that the strike took place in an area where grain was drying in Przewodów, a village near the border with Ukraine.

The Russian Defense Ministry denied being behind “any strikes on targets near the Ukrainian-Polish border” and said in a statement that photos of purported damage “have nothing to do” with Russian weapons.

Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau summoned the Russian ambassador and “demanded immediate detailed explanations,” the government said.

Windows of an apartment building are illuminated during a blackout in central Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Nov. 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Kravchenko)

The strike came to light Tuesday as Russia pounded Ukraine’s energy facilities with its biggest barrage of missiles yet, striking targets across the country and causing widespread blackouts.

The barrage also affected neighboring Moldova. It reported massive power outages after the strikes knocked out a key power line that supplies the small nation, an official said.

The missile strikes plunged much of Ukraine into darkness and drew defiance from Zelenskyy, who shook his fist and declared: “We will survive everything.”

Ukrainian State Emergency Service firefighters work to extinguish a fire at the scene of a Russian shelling in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. Strikes hit residential buildings in the heart of Ukraine’s capital Tuesday, authorities said. Further south, officials announced probes of alleged Russian abuses in the newly retaken city of Kherson, including torture sites and enforced disappearances and detentions. (AP Photo/Andrew Kravchenko)

In his nightly address, the Ukrainian leader said the strike in Poland offered proof that “terror is not limited by our state borders.”

“We need to put the terrorist in its place. The longer Russia feels impunity, the more threats there will be for everyone within the reach of Russian missiles,” Zelenskyy said.

Russia fired at least 85 missiles, most of them aimed at the country’s power facilities, and blacked out many cities, he said.

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