U.S. appeals to Biden for Polish missile defence expansion

In the letter, Joe Wilson and Steve Cohen asked Joe Biden "to grant Poland the authority to intercept and neutralize missiles over Ukraine, particularly those threatening to encroach upon Polish airspace." They noted, ""In this context, Poland’s request to intercept and neutralize missiles over Ukraine is both necessary and urgent as a support mechanism for Ukraine and a safeguard to the frontline of NATO’s borders."

Members of the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe also mentioned remarks made by Radosław Sikorski, Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs, during a September interview with the British newspaper Financial Times. The politician stated that "Poland and other countries bordering Ukraine have a "duty" to shoot down incoming Russian missiles before they enter their airspace despite the opposition of Nato."

"I’m personally of the view that, when hostile missiles are on course of entering our airspace, it would be legitimate self-defence [to strike them] because once they do cross into our airspace, the risk of debris injuring someone is significant, it would be justified self-defence to strike them because once they cross into our airspace, the risk of injuring someone with debris is significant," argued the head of Poland's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At the time, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg rejected this proposal, stating that it threatened "becoming a part of the conflict." His successor, Mark Rutte, has not yet commented on the matter.

Łukasz Pacholski, an expert from "Lotnictwo Aviation International" magazine, points out that Poland has the capability to shoot down Russian missiles in the airspace over Ukraine. "We already have two sets of Patriot systems. These systems were ordered as part of the first phase of the Wisła Program. Additionally, we have at least two Mała Narew anti-aircraft systems, which are short-range systems developed with the European industry, primarily with MBDA," he explains.

However, the expert draws attention to certain challenges related to the potential decision to shoot down missiles over Ukraine. "The biggest problem in this whole situation is that any interference by Polish air defence over Ukrainian territory could be perceived differently by the Russians. On one hand, it could be seen as NATO's actual involvement in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. On the other hand, they could use it to their advantage because both the configuration of Polish Patriot systems and the configuration of Narew systems are still a mystery to the Russians, especially regarding the frequencies of radar stations used for fire control. For them, the combat use of these systems would be an opportunity to gather invaluable intelligence data," he says.

Another critical issue is how Ukrainians themselves would perceive such a decision. There is a risk that debris from the shot-down Russian missiles could fall on inhabited areas of Ukraine, posing a severe threat to civilians and critical infrastructure. "This is clearly visible in incidents where something flew to us. On the one hand, the object was over Poland, which means in Polish airspace, but on the other hand, there was concern that shooting down the object and the debris, or the wreckage of a Russian missile that would fall on populated areas, would cause more damage than the short flight over Poland and reentry into Ukrainian airspace," Łukasz Pacholski notes.

"The issue of actively using Polish anti-aircraft systems is therefore primarily a political decision. We would have to consider whether it is really worth it for us. Because we already have the capabilities. Agreements made in the past are bearing fruit. Anti-aircraft equipment is being systematically delivered to units, soldiers are being trained, and are achieving initial levels of operational readiness, which shows that in the event of an actual threat, this equipment could be used," the expert summarizes.