Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said on Wednesday that two Russian Su-30SM2 fighter planes were spotted conducting “aggressive surveillance […] of our air defense system integration exercises,” prompting Poland to respond. “For this reason, a pair of our duty aircraft from Malbork were scrambled to intercept the a pair of Su-30SM2s from Kaliningrad,” he wrote on X. “The Russian aircraft did not approach Polish airspace. A pair of Swedish fighter jets were also operating over the Baltic Sea, which escorted the intercepted Russian aircraft.” Polish jets were also deployed to intercept a Russian aircraft on Tuesday. While the Il-20 intercepted on Tuesday is a specialized reconnaissance aircraft, the Su-30SM2 is the latest and most advanced version of the Su-30 series of multirole fighters. Provocation warning Tuesday’s incident marks an escalation amid repeated threats by Moscow against NATO allies. Polish authorities have said “provocations” against Poland are likely, although Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has reassured Poles that Russia currently lacks the military capacity to attack. Kosiniak-Kamysz said on Tuesday that the incident involving the Il-20 was the first time Russian military aircraft had approached Poland’s maritime borders in some time. He warned, however, that the Kremlin has a hostile stance toward NATO countries and is conducting a “hybrid war” that includes surveillance activities and is aimed at testing NATO preparedness.
Aircraft from Poland were scrambled, while Swedish pilots offered to help. (Photo illustration: PAP/Jakub Kaczmarczyk)
