US says it sees nothing to contradict assessment that Ukrainian missile landed in Poland

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US said Wednesday it has not seen anything that will contradict an assessment by Poland about a missile explosion in eastern part of that country.

"We have seen nothing that contradicts President Duda’s preliminary assessment that this explosion was most likely the result of a Ukrainian air defense missile that unfortunately landed in Poland," National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement.

"We have full confidence in the Polish government’s investigation of the explosion near their border with Ukraine, and we commend them for the professional and deliberate manner in which they are conducting it," it added.

The missile hit an area in the village of Przewodow, located near the border with Ukraine. Two people were killed in the explosion

The head of NATO said earlier in the day there is no indication that Tuesday's explosion resulted from a deliberate attack on alliance territory or that there are preparations for any such attack.

"(The) missile strike in Poland (was) likely caused by Ukrainian air defense," Jens Stoltenberg said in Brussels after an urgent NATO meeting at the alliance's headquarters.

Watson said US authorities will not get ahead of their Polish counterparts' work and remain in close touch with them "as we are still gathering information."

"We will continue to assess and share any new information transparently as it becomes available," she said.

But according to the US, it is Russia to blame for the missile landing in Poland.

"That said, whatever the final conclusions may be, it is clear that the party ultimately responsible for this tragic incident is Russia, which launched a barrage of missiles on Ukraine specifically intended to target civilian infrastructure.

"Ukraine had — and has — every right to defend itself," said the statement.