NATO should impose no-fly zone over Ukraine to protect against Russian drones, Poland says [View all]

Source: CNN World

PUBLISHED Sep 15, 2025, 10:57 AM ET


Poland’s foreign minister has suggested that NATO states should consider imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine to protect the alliance’s territory and people from Russian drones. Radoslaw Sikorski’s remarks follow an intrusion last week by Russian drones into Polish airspace. NATO fighter jets and air defenses shot down the drones, which were not armed.

Speaking about extending such missions to Ukrainian airspace, Sikorski told the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine: “We as NATO and the EU could be capable of doing this, but it is not a decision that Poland can make alone; it can only be made with its allies.”

“Protection for our population – for example, from falling debris – would naturally be greater if we could combat drones and other flying objects beyond our national territory. “If Ukraine were to ask us to shoot them down over its territory, that would be advantageous for us. If you ask me personally, we should consider it,” Sikorski added.

A Ukrainian no-fly zone, which was promoted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky soon after the then full-scale Russian invasion, was discussed by NATO allies during the Biden administration in 2022 but rejected for fear that direct confrontation with Russian combat planes could broaden the war.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/15/europe/poland-nato-no-fly-zone-ukraine-russian-drones-intl