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Poland invoked Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty on Wednesday after fighter jets shot down multiple Russian drones that illegally entered Polish airspace.
Russia, which has been at war with Ukraine along Poland’s southeastern border, has said it didn’t mean to send drones into the airspace, but the move has prompted outcry from NATO allies.
“What is clear is that the violation last night is not an isolated incident,” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters Wednesday. “Whether it was intentionally or not, it is absolutely reckless. It is absolutely dangerous.”
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, commonly known as NATO, is a defense alliance that the U.S., Canada and several European countries created after World War II. Poland joined the alliance in 1999.
Article 5 is considered the central commitment in the 1949 pact — that an attack on one member will be treated as an attack against all.
Invoking Article 4 is seen as the first step toward possibly invoking Article 5.
What is Article 4?
Article 4 allows member countries to bring their security concerns to the alliance for discussion. It states: “The Parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened.”
Invoking Article 4 can lead to a joint decision or action, but it doesn’t automatically prompt a response from member countries. After it is invoked, the issue is discussed and NATO countries decide how to move forward as a group.
Article 4 has been invoked eight times, including Wednesday, in the nearly eight decades since NATO’s founding. The most recent use was on Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It was made at the request of Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
What happens next?
Rutte said a “full assessment of the incident is ongoing” after the North Atlantic Council discussed the incursion early Wednesday.
“Allies expressed solidarity with Poland and denounced Russia’s reckless behavior,” he said of the initial discussion.
Article 5 has only been used once, following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and it’s unclear when member countries could make such a call if it were to happen.
Rutte said the incident underscores NATO’s mission and the need to step up efforts among the member countries.
“This only reinforces the importance of NATO and the path to which allies agreed at our summit in The Hague earlier this year,” Rutte said. “We need to invest more in our defense, ramp up defense production so we have what we need to deter and defend, and we need to continue to support Ukraine, whose security is interlinked with our own.”
Rutte directed part of his remarks to Russian President Vladimir Putin: “Stop violating allied airspace, and know that we stand ready, that we are vigilant, and that we will defend every inch of NATO territory.”
Where does the U.S. stand?
President Trump responded to the Russian drone action in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday.
“What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!” he wrote.
The president has been trying to broker an end to Russia’s war with Ukraine for several months, and he met with Putin in Alaska last month.
U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker affirmed the U.S.’s support for NATO partners.
“We stand by our NATO Allies in the face of these airspace violations and will defend every inch of NATO territory,” he wrote on the social platform X.
