Statement by Permanent Representative Vassily Nebenzia at a UNSC Briefing in connection with the Incident in Poland’s Airspace
Mr. President,
Today, the members of the Security Council have been convened to discuss an incident that took place on the territory of Poland in the early hours of September 10. According to reports from the Polish Operational Command, more than a dozen unmanned aerial vehicles entered the country's airspace. Some of them were reported to be neutralized by the country’s air defense. A residential building in the Lublin Province was damaged, but there were no casualties. Warsaw has acknowledged that the drones could have flown in from the territory of Ukraine. However, the country has hastily pinned blame on Russia, without presenting any evidence whatsoever.
We believe it is important to analyze the real magnitude of the consequences of the incident and compare this with what Polish and other European politicians say in an attempt to hype up the incident. What is also needed is to pose additional questions regarding the widely circulated versions of what has transpired.
On September 10, Warsaw published data about the fragments of fallen drones. Specifically, they demonstrated a photo of a damaged roof of a house. However, any military expert will confirm that if it had been indeed an explosion of a drone warhead weighing tens of kilograms, the consequences would have been different. In this case, there was a localized damage, more likely a consequence of falling wreckage. Moreover, the Polish authorities were compelled to acknowledge later that they had not found any drone warheads on their territory.
Equally telling is another incident involving a device found in an agricultural field. Apparently, it simply went astray and fell. This could well be the result of a technical malfunction or the effect of the use of electronic warfare.
Now, let’s turn to Russia's actions. On the night of September 10, the Russian Armed Forces carried out strikes using high-precision long-range land-, sea-, and air-based weapons, as well as drones. We targeted military-industrial facilities on the territory of Ukraine that are used for manufacturing and maintaining armored vehicles and aircraft of the Ukrainian army, as well as for producing engines and electronic components for this weaponry. There were no targets marked on Polish territory. The flight range of the drones involved in the strike did not exceed 700 kilometers, which makes it physically impossible for them to reach Polish territory.
Despite the obvious groundlessness of the allegations levied against us, in order to provide for comprehensive and objective investigation into all the circumstances of the incident, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation has expressed its willingness to engage in professional dialogue and consultations with the Ministry of Defense of Poland. The Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, is also ready to join this work if the Polish side is indeed interested in reducing tensions rather than fomenting them. We urge our Polish colleagues to take advantage of this proposal rather than engaging in “megaphone diplomacy” at multilateral platforms. We have repeatedly stated that we are not interested in escalating tensions with Warsaw. We do reiterate this today.
What merits our special mention is the constructive and responsible approach of the Belarusian side in the context of what transpired. Through the existing mechanisms, the relevant bodies of the Republic of Belarus promptly informed their Polish colleagues about the risks involved, demonstrating their responsible stance and their willingness to cooperate. Such a policy is based on the exchange of objective information and coordination of actions, and it should serve as an example of good faith conduct when it comes to this kind of incident.
Mr. President,
Unfortunately, in the current circumstances, the reaction to the incident by the Polish and European political establishment and the media outlets raises serious questions. The head of EU diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, without waiting for official conclusions, rushed to make loud statements about an alleged “deliberate violation” of Polish airspace, advancing her favorite narrative about the need to “invest in Europe's defense,” which means continued militarization thereof. Hysterical outbursts about Russia's alleged “aggression” are also coming from other European capitals. All this is very similar to the information campaign to maintain the level of external mobilization around Ukraine and egg on allies to supply new arms.
In this regard, let us recall the incident in Przewodów in November 2022, when two Polish citizens were killed by a falling missile. At that time, tensions were also running high. However, a year later, Prosecutor General and Minister of Justice Zbigniew Zebro recognized that both the launch site and the missile itself belonged to Ukraine. And former Polish President Andrzej Duda recently confirmed in an interview with journalist Bogdan Rimanowski that the Kiev regime had tried to persuade Warsaw to levy accusations against Russia. According to him, it was a deliberate attempt to drag Poland, and consequently NATO, into an armed conflict.
This candid comment by a Polish politician is an important revelation that is not being quoted by European newspapers nor discussed in national parliaments. But we believe it is very important to remind you of this today.
We are talking about Kiev's desire to, at any cost, involve more and more countries in the confrontation with Russia. It is no secret that Ukraine has long and consistently been sought to expand the geography of the conflict, with no regard for the consequences of such escalation. For years, the Polish authorities, in their anti-Russian fervor, have been willing to support any actions by the Kiev regime, no matter how evil and reckless they may be; and they have eagerly indulged the regime, hoping to harm Russia using its hands. Unfortunately, the Polish authorities are not drawing any conclusions and continue to pursue a policy of escalation in Europe.
Thus, citing joint Russian-Belarusian exercises “Zapad-2025,” the Polish authorities have already announced the closure of the border with Belarus and their intention to deploy up to 40,000 military personnel there. We would like to remind you that our above-mentioned strategic exercises are defensive in nature and do not pose any threat to any of our neighboring countries. Representatives of OSCE countries, including Poland, have been invited to observe them. But the decision is taken, the border is closed, and the victims of this decision will be ordinary citizens, whose freedom of movement has been denied.
In any conflict involving provocations, the key question remains unchanged: who does this benefit? In this case, the answer is obvious: all this artificially inflated hysteria benefits only the head of the Kiev regime and the European “party of war,” who are desperately trying to derail the prospects for a Ukrainian settlement that began to take shape as a result of Russian-American contacts in August.
It is evident that Zelensky is currently the main opponent of a political resolution to the Ukrainian crisis, which exposes his illegitimacy. Without conflict, the basis for the “legal vacuum” will disappear. And this vacuum allows him to retain power in circumvention of constitutional procedures. Even according to Ukrainian polling centers, Zelensky's approval rating is plummeting, as is the level of trust in him. In this context, the unabated hostilities serve as a tool for political survival for the Kiev authorities.
Against this backdrop, it becomes clear how desperate the Kiev authorities are in their frenzy to continue throwing the remnants of the forcibly mobilized people into battle, or more accurately, into slaughter; and they continue doing this despite the colossal losses and skyrocketing desertion rates. Official data for 2025 show that more than 140,000 criminal cases have been filed against soldiers who abandoned their units. The total number of deserters since the beginning of the conflict is approaching 266,000. The actual 50% level of manpower in combat units is considered a success, and the real losses are over 15,000-20,000 people per month, which is higher than the pace of mobilization. People no longer wish to die for a corrupt leadership that has long ceased to represent the interests of society. Incidentally, the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mr. Syrsky, recently admitted that Russia “has a threefold advantage in forces and resources, and in the main areas it has 4- to 6-fold advantage.” This is a frank recognition of failure and, in essence, a verdict on the current military-political course of Kiev.
That is why Zelensky is now willing to do anything to keep this conflict in the active phase. Even if it may require simulating threats, exaggerating consequences, or, as was already the case in Przewodów, manipulate any incident to drag NATO countries into the war.
It is also noteworthy how easily the head of the Kiev regime reneges on his own loud statements when they no longer serve his political interests. In recent months, he has invoked slogans about his supposed intention to engage in dialogue. However, the direct and unambiguous proposal by the Russian president to visit our capital to discuss the whole range of issues related to the Ukrainian settlement was rejected by him under the pretext that he is unable to travel “while his country is under attack.” And yet, as we can see, no attacks prevent him from traveling around European capitals for three and a half years and begging them for further arms supplies and increased military aid. Because it is there, in those capitals, that they talk not about peace, but about continuing the war, which is completely in line with his interests.
As soon as a real chance for peace emerged following the new leader taking office in the White House, a leader who is willing to deal with the root causes of the crisis and seek a lasting solution, Zelensky immediately began to renounce all previously announced peace initiatives. This only confirms what we have been pointing to from the very get-go: the Kiev regime has never had any intention to embrace peace, and everything the regime is doing is designed solely to prolong the conflict, cling to power, and continue to take advantage of its Western patrons.
Arms deliveries, sanctions misadventures, and Brussels' propaganda hysteria do not bring peace any closer, but rather entrench illusions in Kiev that it will be able to change reality. However, reality cannot be changed: each new month of hostilities brings the regime closer to its collapse and raises the cost of a settlement for Kiev. We, for our part, continue to pursue a responsible approach. We are open to constructive engagement with all those who are genuinely interested in de-escalation and establishing peace in Europe, rather than continuing the conflict for the sake of parochial geopolitical advantages.
Thank you.
