Breaking: Russian drones infringe Polish airspace
Vladimir Putin might be in a hurry to restore the Russian Empire
Details are extremely sketchy and it is hard to know quite where to begin: “On Friday [September 5], Russian-Belarusian manoeuvres, very aggressive from a military doctrine perspective, begin in Belarus, very close to the Polish border,” leading Poland to close its border with Belarus.[1] Now, a number of Russian drones have entered Polish airspace, according to MAKS 25 on Mastodon, leading Poland to close four airports, including Warsaw. Apparently these drones have now left and Poland shot down some of them.[2]
The incident today (September 9) follows a Russian drone crash in Polish territory last month.[3] Poland is, of course, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally.
Poland is among the countries whose territory historically was in part or in whole a part of the Russian Empire.[4] Vladimir Putin has made clear he seeks to emulate Peter the Great, restoring as much of that empire as he can,[5] which makes it a whole lot harder to dismiss today’s incursion as any sort of mistake or as possibly being unintentional.
[1] Donald Tusk, quoted in Reuters, “Poland to close Belarus border due to Russia-led military exercises, PM says,” September 9, 2025, https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/poland-close-belarus-border-due-russia-led-military-exercises-pm-says-2025-09-09/
[2] Guardian, “Poland shoots down drones over its territory amid Russian attack on Ukraine, prime minister says,” September 9, 2025, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/10/poland-shoots-down-drones-over-its-territory-amid-russian-attack-on-ukraine-says-military; MAKS 25, Mastodon, September 9, 2025, https://mastodon.social/@MAKS23
[3] Deutschewelle, “Polish officials say crashed drone is Russian ‘provocation,’” August 20, 2025, https://www.dw.com/en/polish-officials-say-crashed-drone-is-russian-provocation/a-73709484
[4] New York Times, "Ukraine Crisis in Maps," n.d., http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/02/27/world/europe/ukraine-divisions-crimea.html
[5] Julian O’Shaughnessy, “I’m reconquering just like Peter the Great, insists Vladimir Putin,” Times, June 10, 2022, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/president-putin-creates-police-department-to-impose-martial-law-xqhlt79fn; Reuters, “Hailing Peter the Great, Putin draws parallel with mission to ‘return’ Russian lands,” June 9, 2022, https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/hailing-peter-great-putin-draws-parallel-with-mission-return-russian-lands-2022-06-09/