Putin’s strategy backfires as missile strikes ‘strengthen Zelesnky’

International tensions surrounding Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine have heightened after a missile crossed borders into Polish territory, resulting in two deaths. NATO members have scrambled to offer condolences to Poland and have asserted a full investigation into the incident will take place. Initial findings have indicated the missile was a Russian model that was likely diverted into Polish territory by the defence operations of the Ukrainian armed forces. NATO allies of Poland have reiterated their support for Ukraine and affirmed President Zelensky’s military is not to blame for the explosion.GB News Home and Security Editor Mark White reported: ‘Initially it looked like it was a Russian missile because it was a Russian [model] of missile. It was relatively antiquated in the scheme of things and not the kind of sophisticated missile defence systems that President Zelensky has been calling for, for some time.’He continued: ‘In some ways, this is going to strengthen [President Zelensky’s] hand and I’m sure he will receive more NATO support.’You can see by the way NATO countries are reacting, saying that this in no way is Ukraine’s fault – this is a result of Russian aggression.  ‘Yesterday, we saw 80 plus Russian missiles hitting towns and cities right across Ukraine. This is a real-world consequence of that. ‘Ukraine is trying to defend themselves and missiles are straying into the territory of a NATO ally.’ Putin’s missile strategy could strengthen NATO support for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion (Image: GETTY) Home and Security Editor Mark White reported support for Ukraine was likely to strengthen (Image: GB NEWS )On Tuesday, Russia launched a wave of missile strikes across Ukraine, devastating vital civilian infrastructure and causing widespread blackouts.In response to reports of a missile attack on Polish territory, the Russian Ministry of Defence issued a statement denying any of the strikes had targeted regions close to the Ukrainian-Polish border.However, attacks were confirmed in the city of Lviv, which is just 50 miles from Polish territory. Volyn Oblast was also targeted, another region which borders Poland.The Russian News Agency TASS reported: ‘The statements of the Polish media and officials about the fall of ‘Russian’ missiles in the Przewodow region are a deliberate provocation. The Russian armed forces did not strike any targets near the Ukrainian-Polish border.’Read more: Britain’s security under threat until Russia’s invasion ends Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki called an urgent meeting of the defence committee (Image: GETTY) The Kremlin has denied missile strikes were launched at targets near the Polish border (Image: GETTY)The Polish Foreign Ministry has confirmed that a Russian-made rocket landed in the village of Przewodow at approximately 3:40 pm local time. The Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki called an urgent meeting of the Committee for National Security and Defence Affairs in response to the incident.The explosion in Poland presents the potential for particularly drastic consequences as the country is a member of the NATO alliance.NATO considers an attack on any member country to be an attack against all states within the alliance, and a deliberate assault on Polish territory could easily trigger Article 5 collective defence response.Don’t miss: If NATO missiles had landed in Russia World War 3 would have started [COMMENT]NATO says ‘Russia bears responsibility’ as it breaks silence on Poland [REVEAL]Polish President says ‘no indication’ explosion was intentional  [REPORT] Jens Stoltenberg asserted Ukraine should not be blamed for the explosion (Image: GETTY)On Wednesday, NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg conducted a press conference to address speculation over the missile strike.He reported there was ‘no indication’ that the blast was a deliberate assault orchestrated by Moscow.He instead suggested the explosion was likely caused by the Ukrainian air defence who had responded to a flood of Russian missile attacks throughout Tuesday.NATO has affirmed Russia would bear the ‘ultimate responsibility’ for the attack as Ukraine maintains the right to defend itself against Moscow’s invasion.Mr Stoltenberg used the press conference as an opportunity to reiterate NATO’s calls for the Kremlin to end its brutal invasion of Ukraine.Read next: Which countries are helping the most with energy bills support – MAPVladimir Putin stashes £12.3bn fund in Africa to plan grand escape NATO warned not to ‘jump to conclusions’ over Poland attack amid WWIIIRussia ‘now seeking medium-long range missiles from Iran’Russian pundits rattled over fears of potential anti-Putin uprising