Poland sends Russia protest note over drone crash in Lublin Voivodeship
The Polish Foreign Ministry has sent a note of protest to Russia, expressing its strong protest against the drone incident that occurred on the night of August 19-20, 2025, in the village of Osiny in the Lublin Voivodeship, the ministry's website reported on Thursday.
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a note of protest that "the incident - the explosion of an unmanned aerial vehicle - is a violation by the Russian Federation of its obligations to respect the sovereignty of Poland, arising, in particular, from the Treaty between the Republic of Poland and the Russian Federation on Friendly and Good-Neighbourly Cooperation and the Convention on International Civil Aviation."
The Polish Foreign Ministry assessed this event as "another deliberate provocation," which corresponds to the pattern of hybrid actions carried out by the Russian Federation against Poland and other European countries. "We strongly condemn all actions by the Russian side that pose a threat to the civilian population, infrastructure and air traffic safety," the protest note says.
The Polish Foreign Ministry demands that the Russian side immediately provide an explanation regarding the incident, in particular the circumstances and reasons for the appearance of an unmanned aerial vehicle on Polish territory, as well as information on the actions taken by the relevant Russian authorities to prevent similar situations in the future. "We call for an immediate end to all hostile and provocative actions against Poland and reiterate that responsibility for the consequences of such incidents lies solely with the Russian side.
As reported, at 2 a.m. on August 20, in the village of Osiny in the Lubelskie Voivodeship, an unknown object fell on a cornfield and then exploded. Deputy Operational Commander of the Polish Armed Forces Piotr Malinowski said that it could have been a decoy drone, and the explosives were needed for "self-destruction." Malinowski also said that the drone was flying at low altitudes, so the Polish air defense radar field did not detect it.
