PM Carney calls for heightened pressure on Russia after drone incursion into Poland

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday the world must intensify its pressure on Moscow to end its war on Ukraine after Russian drones violated NATO airspace overnight.

Poland reported multiple Russian drones entered its territory over the course of several hours overnight and were shot down with the help of NATO allies.

Carney said Canada is “closely co-ordinating” with Poland and other NATO members, and Poland triggered a formal consultation with the military alliance to discuss the incursion.

In a social media post, the prime minister said “we must increase the pressure” on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end his war on Ukraine and agree to a lasting peace. His office said he was referring to actions the entire world must take.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said she is in touch with her Polish counterparts.

On the sidelines of the Liberal national caucus meeting in Edmonton, Anand said Canada stands with both Poland and Ukraine “in the short- and the long-term.”

When asked what concrete actions her government will take in response, Anand said Canada will support Poland as it makes sovereign decisions about how to respond to the drone incursion.

The Polish military described the incursion as an “act of aggression” carried out during a wave of Russian drone strikes on Ukraine. European leaders have called the Russian incursion an intentional escalation of the war.

Moscow claims it did not target Poland, while its close ally Belarus said some drones “lost their course” because of network jamming.

Defence Minister David McGuinty said Ottawa anticipated Russia would use drones in increasingly brazen ways, based on discussions with partners, including a meeting this week with the Ukraine Defence Contact Group.

“We’re not going to take our foot off the accelerator when it comes to providing the support, the training, the leadership and the weapons that Ukraine needs to prosecute this war,” he told reporters.

McGuinty said NATO allies are gathering and sharing information on the drone incursion and will eventually have much more to say.

“I don’t think we can take a lot of what comes from Russia right now at face value,” he added.

He said “a number of countries were involved” in taking down the drones but he would not say whether Canada was part of that effort.

McGuinty said Ottawa could help its NATO partners and Ukraine by sharing intelligence, or through its current deployment to Latvia.

In a post on the social media platform X, Anand wrote that the incident is “another horrendous example of Putin’s refusal to seek peace.”

— With files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2025.