US Helsinki Commission Urges Biden to Authorize Poland to Intercept Russian Missiles Over Ukraine

The US Helsinki Commission has urged President Joe Biden to give Poland the green light to use air defense systems over Ukraine. According to a letter exclusively obtained by The Hill, this would help Ukraine destroy Russian missiles using Polish air defense systems.

Representatives Joe Wilson (Republican from South Carolina) and Steve Cohen (Democrat from Tennessee), the chairman and senior member of the commission, respectively, reportedly sent a letter asking Biden to "authorize Poland to intercept and neutralize missiles over Ukraine, especially those that threaten to enter Polish airspace," The Hill states.

The request is based on Poland’s desire to deploy its air defense systems and potentially extend their use to protect both Polish and Ukrainian airspace from Russian missiles, according to The Hill.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski proposed such an air defense strategy in September during an interview with the Financial Times.

Closing Ukrainian airspace to Russian missiles is noted as one of the most significant challenges in the full-scale war that began in February 2022.

The Helsinki Commission is an independent body under the US Congress tasked with monitoring compliance with the humanitarian provisions of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) in the signatory countries and pressuring governments that violate these provisions.

On September 13, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met with his Polish counterpart Radosław Sikorski at a press conference in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, where Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski signaled that Poland is still considering the transfer of several MiG 29 aircraft.