Polish, NATO jets intercept drones over airspace breach

European countries have tested their early warning systems after Poland reported that several Russian drones entered its airspace early on Wednesday, claims Moscow dismissed as "groundless".

The alleged incursions, which Poland said numbered around 19, resulted in Polish F-16s and Dutch F-35s shooting down at least three drones, the Polish Armed Forces said.

Poland said the incidents marked the first time a member of the NATO military alliance had fired weapons in an incident thought to be connected to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

However, ahead of a special government meeting on Wednesday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said "procedures worked, the danger was eliminated" and that there were no casualties and "no reason to panic".

Tusk said he had also called for a meeting with Poland's NATO allies to discuss the situation.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the alliance would continue to monitor the situation closely and that all air defense systems were on standby.

The drone incursions prompted the temporary closure of the Polish capital's Warsaw Chopin Airport and Warsaw Modlin Airport, as well as Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport and Lublin Airport in the country's east.

While nations that share a border with Ukraine have reported occasional alleged Russian missile or drone incursions in the past, they have been rare and were assumed to be accidental. None are known to have been shot down by NATO aircraft, making the latest incident unusual.

United States President Donald Trump responded to the incursions by writing on social media: "What's with Russia violating Poland's airspace with drones? Here we go!"

However, a White House official told the BBC that there were no plans for Trump to speak to his Polish counterpart, Karol Nawrocki.

Nawrocki said he planned to convene a meeting of his National Security Council regarding the airspace breach. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa voiced their support for the country, stating that the incidents were "unacceptable".

Meanwhile, Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico cautioned that it was unclear whether the incursions had been intentional or accidental.

Belarus stated that it had also tracked drones that crossed its border early on Wednesday, which it believed had strayed from their intended course because of electronic jamming during overnight Russian-Ukrainian exchanges.

Despite the Russian Defense Ministry saying none of its strike targets had been in Poland, Andrei Ordash, Russia's charge d'affaires in Poland, told the RIA Novosti news agency that he had been summoned to Poland's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday because of the incident.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said both the European Union and NATO "accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis" without offering proof, Xinhua News Agency reported.