Polish Armed Forces
The Polish Armed Forces (Siły Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) are the unified military of the Republic of Poland, comprising the Land Forces, Air Force, Navy, Special Forces and Territorial Defence Forces. They are commanded by the Minister of National Defence through the General Staff. Poland has undertaken one of the most extensive military modernization programmes in Europe in response to the security situation on NATO's eastern flank following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
-
Poland scrambles jets, puts air defense on readiness as Russia strikes Ukraine with missiles
Poland's military scrambled aviation and activated ground-based air defense and radar systems on the morning of 7 October in response to a massive Russian missile and cruise missile attack on Ukraine. The Polish Armed Forces' Operational Command posted the notice at 6:46 Kyiv time, while Russian cruise missiles were still in Ukrainian airspace. The measures were described as preventive, aimed at securing Polish airspace, especially in areas adjacent to threatened zones.
-
Poland simplifies rules for shooting down aerial objects from 1 October
From 1 October, Poland is introducing simplified procedures for detecting and shooting down foreign aerial objects in its airspace, replacing mandatory visual identification with positive identification based on radar and other system data. Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said the new rules were fully ready and being implemented by the armed forces, with no legislative changes required. The change is motivated by the recurring risk of Russian drones and missiles entering Polish airspace during strikes on Ukraine.
-
Russian strike drone falls near Polish border; Poland scrambles jets, shuts airports
On 17 September 2026, a Russian strike drone fell or was destroyed approximately 4 km from the Polish-Ukrainian border on Ukrainian territory in Volyn Oblast, near the Dorohusk–Yahodyn crossing. Poland scrambled fighter jets, put air-defence and radar systems on alert, and temporarily suspended operations at Lublin and Rzeszów airports. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the drone likely hit a petrol station, and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced increased F-16 and helicopter activity in response.
-
Russian drones strike Kyiv-Warsaw train and infrastructure near Polish border, prompting Polish emergency meeting
On the morning of September 13, 2026, Russian drones struck infrastructure near the Yahodyn-Dorohusk international border crossing on the Ukraine-Poland border in Volyn Oblast, damaging a gas station, hitting a truck on the Polish side, and striking the locomotive of a Kyiv-Warsaw passenger train about two kilometers from the Polish border. Poland scrambled fighter jets, issued air alerts in Lublin and Podkarpackie voivodeships, and Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting at the Government Centre for Security, warning that Russian escalation could reach Polish territory in the coming weeks. No passengers or railway workers were injured in the locomotive strike after a Ukrzaliznytsia monitoring group warned the crew in advance and gave an evacuation signal roughly 15 minutes before impact.