THE SQUIZ
Investigations continue after a missile landed in Poland, killing 2 people across the border from Ukraine. Who fired the missile and where it came from hasn’t been confirmed, but Jens Stoltenberg, the boss of NATO (aka the mega political and military alliance of 30 countries in Europe and North America), says it was “likely” caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile. He says Russia is still “ultimately responsible” because it was a “direct result” of the ongoing war. For their part, Russian officials have strongly denied involvement in the blast. Poland’s PM Mateusz Morawiecki says they are not expecting any more missiles. 

WHAT’S THE RESPONSE FROM BALI?
As the big-name world leaders were wrapping up the G20 summit yesterday, they made a declaration condemning Russia’s aggression in the “strongest terms”. US President Joe Biden was an early one to call for calm, saying it was “unlikely” the missile was fired from Russia due to its trajectory. An emergency meeting of G7 nations – the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the UK – was quickly arranged. They condemned the “barbaric missile attacks” on Ukraine and offered their “full support” for Poland’s investigation. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke out more strongly, calling the situation “a very significant escalation” and says he has “no doubt” the rocket wasn’t Ukrainian. Aussie PM Anthony Albanese used his G20 platform to criticise the Russian Government’s “reckless and dangerous use of force”, which he says could destabilise the whole of Eastern Europe. 

SO WHERE IS THIS GOING?
At first, there were concerns that the explosion could escalate the Ukraine conflict because, as a member of NATO, Poland could call upon the alliance to protect its territory. But PM Morawiecki now says they may not need to invoke the treaty, which allows members to call for urgent consultations whenever the “security of any of the parties is threatened”. He is also not talking about invoking Article 5, which allows for a military response if a member country is attacked. Watch this space…