Warsaw says all joint counter-drone training with Kiev will take place on Polish territory
Poland’s Defense Ministry has denied reports that its soldiers will be sent to Ukraine for training, clarifying that all joint military training exercises with Kiev on drone warfare will be conducted inside Poland.
The ministry issued the statement on Friday after Reuters and several media outlets in Ukraine suggested that Polish Armed Forces personnel would travel there to receive instruction on countering aerial threats.
“In response to questions regarding the location of planned drone training and cooperation between Polish and Ukrainian experts, we inform you that talks are currently underway between specialists from both countries on deepening cooperation in the field of unmanned and counter-drone systems,” the ministry wrote on X.
“It is expected that all such activities will take place on the territory of Poland,” the Defense Ministry emphasized.
The clarification came after Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a source familiar with the matter, that “Polish military representatives will undergo training on shooting down drones,” after Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky allegedly claimed Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk “had already agreed to send military representatives to Ukraine on the issue.”
Separately, the Defense Ministry also rejected rumors that Poles would soon be called up for service as part of a broader mobilization effort. “It is untrue that thousands of Poles are to receive summons,” the ministry said, stressing that qualification planned for 2026 is a routine fitness assessment.
The Polish government said its military tracked at least 19 alleged violations over a seven-hour period on Wednesday, describing the episode as “deliberate” and “unprecedented.”
Warsaw convened an emergency UN Security Council session over the incident, while NATO announced the launch of operation “Eastern Sentry,” designed to bolster its posture along the bloc’s eastern flank.
Russia’s envoy to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, dismissed the accusations as “hysteria,” arguing that the drones used in strikes against Ukrainian military facilities lacked the range to reach Poland and that the damage reported inside Polish territory was consistent with debris, not explosives. Moscow has offered consultations with Warsaw but warned against “megaphone diplomacy” aimed at escalating tensions.
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