No Indication Missile That Hit Poland Was An Attack But Nato Says Russia Is To Blame As It Hammers Ukraine

“I think this demonstrates the dangers associated with the ongoing war in Ukraine, but it has not changed our fundamental assessment of the threat against NATO allies,” Stoltenberg told reporters on Wednesday after a meeting of NATO ambassadors. Jens Stoltenberg, secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), speaks during a press conference following a meeting of the North Atlantic Council at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, November 16, 2022. Bloomberg He said preliminary findings showed it was possible the missile was a Ukrainian air defense missile, but that “Russia bears responsibility for what happened yesterday in Poland” because it was a “direct result” of ongoing Russian attacks in Ukraine. Poland is a member of NATO, so if the missile attack had been a hostile attack by Russia, it could have prompted a response from allies under the collective defense treaty that underpins the transatlantic military alliance, including the United States. The origin of the missile that hit Polish soil on Tuesday afternoon has not been confirmed, but as of Wednesday, the leaders of the US and Poland had said it was unlikely to have been launched by Russia. Members of the police are seen near the village of Przewodow, Poland, on November 16, 2022, after two people were killed the previous afternoon in an explosion at a farm near the country’s border with Ukraine. Artur Widak/Anadolu Agency/Getty President Biden joined other Western leaders in calling for a full investigation into the strike, but said he thought it unlikely the missile was fired from Russia, based on preliminary evidence of its trajectory, and that it could instead have been the result of Ukraine. intercepting or attempting to intercept a Russian attack. “We’ll see,” Mr. Biden said on Tuesday. “I’ll make sure we find out exactly what happened.” When he returned to the White House early Thursday, reporters asked the president about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s claims that the missile was not Ukrainian. Mr. Biden responded: “That’s not the evidence.” President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting of G7 and NATO leaders in Bali, Indonesia, November 16, 2022. Doug Mills/AP Polish President Andrzej Duda echoed Mr Biden’s assessment on Wednesday morning, saying it was likely a Ukrainian missile that fell directly into Polish territory, near the border with Ukraine, by mistake. He said it did not appear to be a “deliberate attack” by Russia. The Polish president repeated his statements from the previous day, saying that he and his allies “acted calmly” because “this is a difficult situation”. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin agreed, telling reporters at a briefing on Wednesday, “We have seen nothing to contradict President Duda’s preliminary assessment that this explosion was likely the result of a Ukrainian air defense missile that unfortunately landed in Poland.” Like other Western leaders, Austin also said that “Russia bears ultimate responsibility for this incident.” The secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine called on social media for a “joint study” of the incident. He said Ukraine expected to be able to review the evidence for any conclusion that the missile that landed in Poland was a Ukrainian air defense missile and asked that Ukrainian officials be given access to the site. We are in favor of a joint study of the incident with the fall of the missile in Poland. We are ready to hand over the details of the Russian route we have. We are waiting for information from our partners, based on which it was concluded that this is a Ukrainian air defense missile. — Oleksiy Danilov (@OleksiyDanilov) November 16, 2022 Zelensky said later Wednesday that he believed he had received reports from Ukraine’s air force that the missile was not Ukrainian. He also asked that Ukraine be allowed to visit the site in Poland. “I have no doubt in the Air Force report that it was not our missile and it was not our missile attack. I have no reason not to trust them. I went through the war with them,” Zelensky told a news conference. “Do we have a right to be on the search team? Of course.” Polish investigators were hard at work in the missile crater earlier on Wednesday and had set up a police cordon a few meters away, BBC News’ Dan Johnson reported from the scene. Residents of the area, which is only about 10 miles from the Ukrainian border, have been nervous that war could spread to their community since Russian leader Vladimir Putin launched his invasion on Feb. 24, Johnson noted. In #Przewodów, where the explosion took place, police officers have been securing the area since the start of the event. Police experts, e.g. from @CBSPolicja, #CLKP, Criminal Bureau @PolskaPolicja together with other agencies explain in detail the circumstances of the incident and secure evidence. pic.twitter.com/ohBP0rT4u7 — Polish Police 🇵🇱 (@PolskaPolicja) November 16, 2022 Russia launched more than 90 missiles and drones at Ukrainian towns and cities on Tuesday, plunging ten million households into darkness, the Ukrainian government said. It was the largest missile barrage launched by Russia during the war. “This is a Russian missile attack on collective security,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said. “This is a very significant escalation. We need to act.” The Kremlin denied responsibility for the missile landing in Poland and called the response of European leaders “hysterical”, while noting the “restrained and much more professional” US response. Police officers stand at a roadblock after an explosion in Przewodow, a village in eastern Poland near the border with Ukraine, November 16, 2022. KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERS While urging a thorough investigation, Western leaders including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Russia bore ultimate responsibility for the missile landing in Poland. “This would not have happened without Russia’s war against Ukraine, without the missiles that are now being fired at Ukrainian infrastructure intensively and on a large scale,” Soltz said. “This is the harsh and unforgiving reality of Putin’s war,” Sunak said. CBS News correspondent Chris Livesay contributed to this report. More Haley Ott Haley Ott is a digital reporter/producer for CBS News based in London.

title: " No Indication Missile That Hit Poland Was An Attack But Nato Says Russia Is To Blame As It Hammers Ukraine " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-23” author: “Lonnie Lawson”

“I think this demonstrates the dangers associated with the ongoing war in Ukraine, but it has not changed our fundamental assessment of the threat against NATO allies,” Stoltenberg told reporters on Wednesday after a meeting of NATO ambassadors. Jens Stoltenberg, secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), speaks during a press conference following a meeting of the North Atlantic Council at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, November 16, 2022. Bloomberg He said preliminary findings showed it was possible the missile was a Ukrainian air defense missile, but that “Russia bears responsibility for what happened yesterday in Poland” because it was a “direct result” of ongoing Russian attacks in Ukraine. Poland is a member of NATO, so if the missile attack had been a hostile attack by Russia, it could have prompted a response from allies under the collective defense treaty that underpins the transatlantic military alliance, including the United States. The origin of the missile that hit Polish soil on Tuesday afternoon has not been confirmed, but as of Wednesday, the leaders of the US and Poland had said it was unlikely to have been launched by Russia. Members of the police are seen near the village of Przewodow, Poland, on November 16, 2022, after two people were killed the previous afternoon in an explosion at a farm near the country’s border with Ukraine. Artur Widak/Anadolu Agency/Getty President Biden joined other Western leaders in calling for a full investigation into the strike, but said he thought it unlikely the missile was fired from Russia, based on preliminary evidence of its trajectory, and that it could instead have been the result of Ukraine. intercepting or attempting to intercept a Russian attack. “We’ll see,” Mr. Biden said on Tuesday. “I’ll make sure we find out exactly what happened.” When he returned to the White House early Thursday, reporters asked the president about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s claims that the missile was not Ukrainian. Mr. Biden responded: “That’s not the evidence.” President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting of G7 and NATO leaders in Bali, Indonesia, November 16, 2022. Doug Mills/AP Polish President Andrzej Duda echoed Mr Biden’s assessment on Wednesday morning, saying it was likely a Ukrainian missile that fell directly into Polish territory, near the border with Ukraine, by mistake. He said it did not appear to be a “deliberate attack” by Russia. The Polish president repeated his statements from the previous day, saying that he and his allies “acted calmly” because “this is a difficult situation”. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin agreed, telling reporters at a briefing on Wednesday, “We have seen nothing to contradict President Duda’s preliminary assessment that this explosion was likely the result of a Ukrainian air defense missile that unfortunately landed in Poland.” Like other Western leaders, Austin also said that “Russia bears ultimate responsibility for this incident.” The secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine called on social media for a “joint study” of the incident. He said Ukraine expected to be able to review the evidence for any conclusion that the missile that landed in Poland was a Ukrainian air defense missile and asked that Ukrainian officials be given access to the site. We are in favor of a joint study of the incident with the fall of the missile in Poland. We are ready to hand over the details of the Russian route we have. We are waiting for information from our partners, based on which it was concluded that this is a Ukrainian air defense missile. — Oleksiy Danilov (@OleksiyDanilov) November 16, 2022 Zelensky said later Wednesday that he believed he had received reports from Ukraine’s air force that the missile was not Ukrainian. He also asked that Ukraine be allowed to visit the site in Poland. “I have no doubt in the Air Force report that it was not our missile and it was not our missile attack. I have no reason not to trust them. I went through the war with them,” Zelensky told a news conference. “Do we have a right to be on the search team? Of course.” Polish investigators were hard at work in the missile crater earlier on Wednesday and had set up a police cordon a few meters away, BBC News’ Dan Johnson reported from the scene. Residents of the area, which is only about 10 miles from the Ukrainian border, have been nervous that war could spread to their community since Russian leader Vladimir Putin launched his invasion on Feb. 24, Johnson noted. In #Przewodów, where the explosion took place, police officers have been securing the area since the start of the event. Police experts, e.g. from @CBSPolicja, #CLKP, Criminal Bureau @PolskaPolicja together with other agencies explain in detail the circumstances of the incident and secure evidence. pic.twitter.com/ohBP0rT4u7 — Polish Police 🇵🇱 (@PolskaPolicja) November 16, 2022 Russia launched more than 90 missiles and drones at Ukrainian towns and cities on Tuesday, plunging ten million households into darkness, the Ukrainian government said. It was the largest missile barrage launched by Russia during the war. “This is a Russian missile attack on collective security,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said. “This is a very significant escalation. We need to act.” The Kremlin denied responsibility for the missile landing in Poland and called the response of European leaders “hysterical”, while noting the “restrained and much more professional” US response. Police officers stand at a roadblock after an explosion in Przewodow, a village in eastern Poland near the border with Ukraine, November 16, 2022. KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERS While urging a thorough investigation, Western leaders including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Russia bore ultimate responsibility for the missile landing in Poland. “This would not have happened without Russia’s war against Ukraine, without the missiles that are now being fired at Ukrainian infrastructure intensively and on a large scale,” Soltz said. “This is the harsh and unforgiving reality of Putin’s war,” Sunak said. CBS News correspondent Chris Livesay contributed to this report. More Haley Ott Haley Ott is a digital reporter/producer for CBS News based in London.