Poland, Romania scramble jets as Russian strikes hit western Ukraine near Nato borders – Firstpost

Poland and Romania scrambled fighter jets overnight after Russia launched a wave of missile and drone attacks on western Ukraine, close to the borders of both NATO members, according to a report. politico report quoting officials

Moscow’s barrage targeted the cities of Lviv and Ternopil, far from the front line in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attacks damaged residential apartment blocks, killed nine people and injured dozens of others. Rescue teams are still searching for survivors, with some residents believed to be trapped under the debris.

In a post on Twitter, Warsaw’s operational command said it had deployed “quick-reaction fighter pairs and an early warning aircraft” as a precaution, adding that “ground-based air defense and radar surveillance systems” were at the “highest state of readiness”.

Polish authorities also temporarily closed two airports in the south-east of the country – Rzeszow and Lublin – after Russian air strikes emerged.

Meanwhile, in Romania, the Defense Ministry said it dispatched four fighter jets shortly after midnight – two German Eurofighter Typhoons and two Romanian Air Force F-16s – after detecting a drone that had strayed about five miles into Romanian airspace, according to reports. politico,

Ministry spokesman Corneliu Pavel told the local outlet digi24 The pilots had the authority to shoot down the drone but did not do so when its signal disappeared.

The two countries’ responses were coordinated with NATO partners.

The Polish Operational Command thanked the Coalition and member states Norway, Spain, the Netherlands and Germany for assistance in monitoring the airspace.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has begun to affect neighboring countries, with a Romanian village evacuated on Monday after a Russian attack set fire to a gas tanker across the river in a Ukrainian port.

In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said saboteurs over the weekend blew up a section of the rail line between Warsaw and Lublin, a key route linking Ukraine.

Zelensky said Russia’s night attacks also targeted Kiev, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Chernihiv and Dnipro. He called for increased air support for Ukraine and tougher sanctions on Moscow.

“Every brazen attack against normal life proves that pressure on Russia is still insufficient,” Zelensky warned.

with inputs from agencies