Several Nato members are sending troops, artillery, and air defence systems to secure its eastern flank after what Poland called an unprecedented Russian drone incursion into its airspace.
In the early hours of Wednesday, three Russian drones were shot down after crossing into Polish airspace.
Other drones crashed to the ground and were later found across eastern Poland.
Poland has requested a UN Security Council session about the incident, which will take place on Friday at 19:00 GMT.
In response to the drone incursion, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic said they would send defences to Poland, while Lithuania would receive a German brigade and greater warning of Russian attacks on Ukraine that could cross over.
Germany also said it would “intensify its engagement along Nato’s eastern border” and extend and expand air policing over Poland.
Later France’s Emmanuel Macron announced the country would send three Rafale fighter jets to help protect Poland’s airspace.
“We will not yield to Russia’s growing intimidation,” Macron said.
US President Donald Trump, who has been trying unsuccessfully to broker a halt to the war in Ukraine, told reporters on Thursday that the alleged incursion might have happened by “mistake”.
“I’m not happy about anything to do with the whole situation, but hopefully that’s going to come to an end,” Trump said.
Addressing parliament on Thursday, Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz listed the offers of support from Poland’s partners, saying the Dutch were going to deploy air defence systems, artillery and 300 troops, while the Czech would send helicopters and 100 soldiers.
He also said the French and the British could deploy aircraft to secure Nato’s eastern flank.
“Poland has repeatedly heard words of solidarity and empty gestures throughout its history,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said. “Today, we have concrete declarations.”
Although Russian drones and missiles have trespassed into some Nato member countries before, this was the most serious incident of its kind since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The Kremlin said it had no further comment to make on claims that Russia had deliberately sought to stoke tensions in Poland.
Yet many Polish and European leaders believe the incursion was deliberate.
“This Russian provocation…is nothing more than an attempt to test our capabilities,” Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki said, echoing comments by his German and French counterparts.
However, experts’ opinions are split on whether Moscow intended to launch the drones into Poland.
Accidental or deliberate? Russia’s drone incursion into Poland is a test for Nato
On Thursday, Nato’s top military commander Alexus Grynkewich acknowledged it was not yet known whether the act had been intentional and said even the precise number of drones which had crossed into Polish airspace was still to be determined.
But in the face of growing nervousness from the countries bordering Russia, neither Nato nor Poland are taking any chances.
