The prime minister of Poland has said Europe is ‘in a pre-war era’ as Vladimir Putin’s barbaric bombardments on Ukraine came alarmingly close to his country’s borders on Friday.
Russia deployed some 99 missiles and kamikaze drones on power plants in central regions in Ukraine, deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure.
People were left without electricity in the latest barrage on the country’s already damaged power infrastructure.
Power stations were hit in Stryi, Lviv region, and Burshtyn, Ivano-Frankivsk region, both in the direction of Nato and EU state Poland.
Polish PM Donald Tusk said in an interview with newspaper network LENA: ‘We have not had a situation like this since 1945.
‘I know it sounds devastating, especially to people of the younger generation, but we have to mentally get used to a new era. We are in a pre-war era. I don’t exaggerate.’
Nato was forced to scramble its fighter jets in Poland amid the strikes in the early hours of today.
The Operational Command of the Polish armed forces said on X: ‘Polish and allied aircraft are operating in Polish airspace, which may result in increased noise levels, especially in the southeastern part of the country.’
Away from Poland, fragments of a drone were discovered on a farm in Nato-member Romania, near the border with Ukraine.
The Romanian ministry of defence said the farm is located near the Danube river, which separates the two countries at Ukraine’s southwestern edge.
A statement said: ‘On the evening of 28 March, fragments that appear to have come from an aerial device [drone] on a farmland in the Great Braila Island were identified.
‘The ministry of national defence, together with specialised structures within the national defence system, public order and national security, is conducting an investigation of the incident on Friday, March 29, according to specific operational procedures.’