U.S. says it will defend 'every inch' of NATO territory after Poland shoots down Russian drones

The United States vowed Friday to defend “every inch of NATO territory,” after a number of suspected Russian drones entered Polish airspace during an attack on Ukraine

The United States vowed Friday to defend “every inch of NATO territory,” after a number of suspected Russian drones entered Polish airspace during an attack on Ukraine.

Tensions have been high across Europe as leaders condemned the airspace violation on Wednesday — a first since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022 — as the latest sign of escalation from the Kremlin, which has rebuffed President Donald Trump’s bid to broker peace talks.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said it was “the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II,” but Moscow downplayed the incident, saying it had “no plans to target” facilities in Poland.

Trump said Thursday that Russia’s alleged drone incursion into Poland could have been a mistake, but his acting U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Dorothy Shea, appeared to try to reassure Washington’s NATO allies on Friday following Trump’s remarks.

Violating the airspace of a U.S. ally, “intentionally or otherwise,” showed “immense disrespect for good-faith U.S. efforts to bring an end to this conflict,” she told the U.N. Security Council.