A fire at a Starlink satellite communications station in central Poland has been described as deliberate sabotage, Polish officials said Thursday, as Denmark's intelligence service issued one of the starkest warnings yet that Russia could launch a limited military attack against a NATO country within months.
The blaze broke out overnight on Wednesday at a state-owned facility in Wola Krobowska, in the Masovian Voivodeship — a region in central Poland that includes the capital, Warsaw. Polish Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said the fire was "deliberately designed to disable the station," disrupting internet access for a number of institutions including the Ukrainian military, which relies on Starlink for operational communications and drone guidance. Gawkowski said no perpetrator had been formally identified, but that "many signs suggest this aligns with Russia's new doctrine of attack." The Kremlin has not commented, and Russia has consistently denied involvement in similar incidents across Europe. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said while he was cautious about labelling the incident sabotage "without 100% certainty," he acknowledged it "looks bad." The station remains operational.
The incident is the latest in a growing series of suspected Russian hybrid operations across Europe. Earlier this month, Germany publicly blamed Russia for an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport, while France has moved to protect critical infrastructure and defence industry sites. In Poland alone, a Ukrainian train travelling from Kyiv to Warsaw was struck by a Russian drone, and a Russian military helicopter briefly violated Polish airspace this week, prompting the scrambling of fighter jets. On Thursday, Moldova reported that four Russian drones crossed into its airspace — with at least one exploding — while Romania said one drone crashed on its territory.
Danish defence intelligence, publishing its annual threat assessment on Thursday, warned of a "low but growing risk" that Russia could carry out long-range strikes on NATO infrastructure supporting Ukraine, or launch a limited incursion using troops possibly operating without insignia. The service considers a full-scale invasion of NATO territory "highly unlikely" but notably said it "cannot be ruled out." It warned that Russia may be calculating that NATO members — particularly if uncertain of US support under President Donald Trump — would not respond collectively, potentially undermining Article 5, the alliance's collective defence commitment. A source familiar with Russian military thinking told reporters that Moscow's top command believes some NATO states are already waging hybrid war against Russia by helping guide Ukrainian missiles and drones, and that Russia sees itself as entitled to respond in kind.
The broader context is one of intensifying pressure on European security. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, warned that Russia threatens not only Ukraine but also Moldova, Poland and the Baltic states. Meanwhile, Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities have escalated, with faster jet-powered drones now making interception more difficult. Six agricultural workers were killed in a Russian strike on a farm in Kharkiv region on Thursday. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the UN Security Council that there would be no pause in the war, even as a Russian presidential envoy reportedly travelled to Washington to meet Trump administration officials. The confluence of sabotage operations in Europe and mounting intelligence warnings points to a deliberate Russian strategy to strain NATO cohesion and divert resources from Ukraine.