Polish PM says fire at defence manufacturer was arson

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has described a fire at a defence manufacturer in Poland as "deliberate arson".

The fire took place at the production plant of WB Group in the south-central Polish city of Skarżysko-Kamienna in the early hours of Monday morning and was extinguished by local fire crews after two hours.

WB Group produces components for drone systems and the company's website states that the group started producing reconnaissance drones in Ukraine last year.

Polish police and the country's Internal Security Agency are investigating the incident.

Last Sunday, a large fire also damaged the warehouse of JFG Composites, a company in the eastern city of Lublin that produces components for the aviation industry.

"As far as the fires in two plants in Lublin and in Skarżysko-Kamienna are concerned, in the case of Skarżysko-Kamienna there is no doubt that there was deliberate arson, that is, an act of sabotage," Mr Tusk told the media before a cabinet meeting in Warsaw this afternoon.

Mr Tusk said that investigators did not have similar evidence of deliberate arson in the case of the fire at the factory in Lublin, but "it cannot be ruled out taking into account the nature of the production".

The two factories were closed at the time of the incidents and Polish authorities reported that no injuries had occurred.

Mr Tusk's comments come after yesterday’s accusation by the German government that Russia was behind an incident in August involving an explosive-laden drone at an airport in Leipzig.

Both the European Union and Ireland today summoned Russian ambassadors in Brussels and Dublin respectively, to express concerns over the Leipzig incident.

"There have been very disturbing incidents in the last few dozen hours in Poland, as well as in Germany," said Mr Tusk.

"This is a continuation of Russia's escalation efforts throughout the region. Unfortunately, these are not the first cases and certainly, what is worse, not the last," he said.

Poland has accused Russian intelligence networks of orchestrating sabotage attacks on Polish soil since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, including a fire at a shopping centre outside Warsaw in 2024 and an explosion which damaged a railway line in central-east Poland last November.

Russia has denied any involvement in previous alleged sabotage incidents in Poland.