Poland closes airspace along eastern border for three months after Russian drone raid

Polish authorities have announced the closure of the airspace along the country’s borders with Belarus and Ukraine. The measure is set to remain in place for a period of three months.

“A flight restriction has been introduced in eastern Poland in the form of a restricted zone from Sept. 10, 2025, at 22:00 UTC until Dec. 9, 2025, at 23:59 UTC to ensure state security,” read a statement from the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces.

Following the announcement, Latvia also announced the closure of its eastern border airspace, albeit for a shorter period of time. Latvia will maintain the no-fly zone for a week — at least until Sept. 18 — with the option to extend, Defense Minister Andris Spruds said at a press conference.

Spruds called the Russian drone raid on Poland a day earlier a gross violation of NATO airspace and said Latvia must respond accordingly. He confirmed there is currently no direct threat to Latvia but said preventive measures are necessary.

The air force is now on heightened alert as part of comprehensive national defense exercises, he added.

A day earlier, Karolina Galęcka, a spokesperson for Poland's Interior Ministry, said seven drones and “fragments of a missile of unknown origin” had been found on Polish territory following an overnight attack by Russian forces.

The newspaper Rzeczpospolita reported that more than 20 drones had violated Polish airspace, adding that the most likely count was 23. The Defense Ministry said Dutch F-35s played a key role in intercepting the drones, operating together with Polish aircraft.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk informed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte of the incident and convened an emergency government meeting. He also said Poland would invoke NATO’s Article 4, which calls for formal consultations with the alliance. Article 4 has been triggered only seven times since NATO’s founding in 1949, most recently in 2022 after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.