Joe Biden has questioned the origin of a missile that hit Poland and killed two people on Tuesday night, saying it is “unlikely” it was fired from Russia.
The US president was speaking after a meeting with G7 and NATO leaders to discuss the incident, which hit a grain silo in Przewodow, near the Polish-Ukrainian border.
Ukrainian and Polish authorities said the blast was caused by a Russian-made missile, but Mr Biden appeared to suggest the missile may not have been fired from Russia.
He said: “There is preliminary information that disputes this.
“I don’t want to say that until we fully investigate it, but it’s unlikely in the trajectory lines that it was fired from Russia, but we’ll see.”
The missile had sparked worried discussions about NATO’s Article 5, which means an attack on one member country is considered an attack on all allies.
A number of NATO nations have taken to Twitter to express their support for Poland, including British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who “reiterated the UK’s solidarity with Poland”.
US Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said America would “defend every inch of NATO territory”.
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But Polish President Andrzej Duda said his country is “very likely” to invoke Article 4 later today, which allows a member country to raise and discuss a security issue.
Mr Duda said: “We have no conclusive evidence at this time as to who launched this missile…it was most likely a Russian-made missile, but it’s all still under discussion. an investigation at this time.”
He added: “We are acting very calmly.
“What happened was a one-off incident.
“There is no indication that there will be a repeat.”
Russia has denied any involvement in the Polish missile, saying reports that it is to blame are a “deliberate provocation aimed at escalating the situation”.
A United Nations spokesperson said avoiding an escalation of the war is “absolutely essential”, adding that a “thorough investigation” should take place.
