U.S. and Allies On High Alert After Russian Missile Reportedly Hits Poland

The United States and its allies are on high alert after a Russian missile strike in Poland killed two people on Tuesday, an incident that could signal a major turning point for Moscow's war in Ukraine, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

President Joe Biden held an emergency meeting with G7 and NATO allies on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, after Poland reported the incident.

"We offer our full support for and assistance with Poland's ongoing investigation. We agree to remain in close touch to determine appropriate next steps as the investigation proceeds," NATO and G7 leaders said in a joint statement, condemning the "barbaric missile attacks" that Russia perpetrated on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure on Tuesday.

"We reaffirm our steadfast support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in the face of ongoing Russian aggression, as well as our continued readiness to hold Russia accountable for its brazen attacks on Ukrainian communities, even as the G20 meets to deal with the wider impacts of the war," the Leaders noted. "We all express our condolences to the families of the victims in Poland and Ukraine"

Speaking to reporters after his conversations with Polish President Duda and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, President Biden said of Russia it was "totally unconscionable with what they're doing."

Asked whether it was too early to say the missile came from Russia, Biden said there's "preliminary information that contests that. I don't want to say that until we completely investigate."

In the meantime, he added: "It is Unlikely in the lines of the trajectory that it was fired from Russia but we'll see."

Asked whether Poland is talking about invoking article 4 or 5, Biden said there would be an ambassadors meeting.

In his turn, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Mariusz Błaszczak and assured him of the ironclad commitment of the U.S. to defend Poland and the Pentagon's readiness to assist Poland in any investigation of the incident.

"The two leaders agreed to coordinate closely together with their NATO Allies on next steps," the Pentagon said in a readout.

"If Russia made a mistake, it needs to own it immediately. Deflecting and denying is not acceptable," U.S. Congressional House Foreign Affairs Committee chair Representative Gregory Meeks said in a separate statement.

State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel also echoed the administration's position. Asked if it would matter whether the strike was intentional, Patel told a daily press briefing: "Of course, that's something that would be of importance."

According to Patel, the U.S. is working with the Polish government to determine the extent of reports. "We can't confirm the reports or any of the details at this time, but I can assure you we will determine what happened and what appropriate next steps would be."

Asked by TURAN's correspondent whether Washignton was confident that Putin was targeting NATO, Patel said, "I'm just not going to try and speculate or try and get in the mind of President Putin or his intentions. What we do know is that this war has been one that is unjust. It's been brutal. It has affected millions of lives, not just in Ukraine but across the world as well."

Patel went on to add, "As you saw, in response to President Zelenskyy's speech at the G20, what President Putin did was he met Ukraine with another round of cruel attacks that killed civilians and destroyed infrastructure. So what we're going to do is we're going to continue to stand with the government and the people of Ukraine who have stayed strong in the face of Russia's brutal and needless onslaught for months, and we will continue to support Ukraine."

The Biden administration on Tuesday asked for $37.7 billion more in Ukraine assistance as part of a new supplemental request to Congress. Another $7 billion will be given to the White House to draw down existing U.S. weapons and ammunition stocks to send to Ukraine quickly.

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.