NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the organization was monitoring the situation, while Poland said it had confirmed the incident.

Polish military authorities said a Russian missile briefly crossed the country’s airspace before taking off, sparking concern in the country borders on Ukraine That day, Russia carried out attacks in several Ukrainian cities at least 30 people killed.

Poland, a member of the NATO military alliance, said the object entered from the direction of Ukraine on Friday morning and was about 40 kilometers (24 miles) away before leaving after about three minutes.

“Everything indicates that a Russian missile has entered Polish airspace,” said Poland’s defense chief General Wieslaw Kukula. “We monitored it via radar and left the airspace. We have confirmation of this on radars and from [NATO] Allies.”

Russian officials have not yet commented on the incident, which comes at a time of high tensions between Russia and European countries near Ukraine Russia invaded in February 2022.

Spoke to the President @AndrzejDuda about the rocket incident in #Poland. #NATO stands in solidarity with our valued ally, is monitoring the situation and we will remain in touch once the facts are clarified. NATO remains vigilant.

— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) December 29, 2023

Polish officials say they are working to further verify their findings and rule out the possibility of a technical malfunction.

In a social media post on Friday, the NATO Secretary General said Jens Stoltenberg said the security alliance was monitoring the situation and communicating with Polish officials.

“I spoke to President Andrzej Duda about the rocket incident in Poland. NATO stands in solidarity with our valued ally, is monitoring the situation and we will remain in touch once the facts are established. NATO remains vigilant,” said Stoltenberg.

Polish army operations commander Maciej Klisz said the country’s air defense network was on high alert due to recent Russian attacks Missile and drone attacks in Ukraine and that fighter jets were sent to intercept the missile before it left Polish territory.

The military also said a ground search was being conducted in the area where the missile disappeared from radar.

The White House said on Friday that US President Joe Biden was closely following developments in Poland. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan “expressed the United States’ solidarity with Poland, our close NATO ally,” in a phone call with Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Siewiera and promised technical assistance if needed, according to a statement from the White House.

The incident is not the first time that war has threatened in Ukraine game over on Polish territory. In November 2022, a faulty Ukrainian shipment Defense missile Two civilians were killed during the landing in the border village of Przewodow.

Poland’s newly elected Prime Minister Donald Tuskwho won the election with a bloc of pro-EU and pro-Ukraine parties that toppled the country’s far-right government after eight years in power, has pledged full support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

This war has been going on for nearly two years with little end in sight as Ukraine struggles to drive out Russian forces that have built strong defenses along captured territory.

While Ukraine still receives significant support from many Western governments, divisions have emerged began to appear about the provision of further Military aidincluding the USA, which has provided more support than any other country.

On Friday, the British Ministry of Defense announced that it would send 200 anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine, which is currently being heavily bombed by Russian forces.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that he had visited Avdiivka, an eastern town near the front line where heavy fighting has taken place.

“This is one of the most difficult areas on the front line,” he wrote on Telegram along with a video of himself standing in front of a sign with the city’s name and handing out medals to soldiers.

“I would like to thank everyone who is in the front row [of fire] for their service, for this year in which the whole country survived thanks to its soldiers,” he said.