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Western leaders are on high alert after an explosion in Poland kills two people

Hous after allegations on Tuesday that a missile attack near Poland's border with Ukraine killed two people, world leaders on three continents hurried to gather answers, an occurrence that could prove to be one of the most escalatory moments of the almost nine-month war.

President Joe Biden, who is in Indonesia for the G-20, and national security advisor Jake Sullivan called their Polish counterparts urgently. According to a readout, Biden "provided full US support for and help with Poland's inquiry" and underlined America's "ironclad commitment to NATO" during his call.

Other leaders in the United States and Europe made a flurry of phone calls to Kyiv officials. However, details were limited, and officials issued cautious statements.

Warsaw said it dispatched an investigation team to the site of the deadly blast in Przewodów to discover more, but Moscow and Kiev promptly pointed fingers.

In a video message, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said "Russian missiles hit Poland," calling it a "attack on collective security" and a "major escalation." The Russian Foreign Ministry refuted the allegation, tweeting, "Russian hardware has launched NO strikes in the area."

Meanwhile, social media speculation — fed in part by pro-Russian bots — spread that the accident in Poland was caused by a Ukrainian air-defense missile sent to counter Russian weapons. In a tweet, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba slammed the claim, calling it a "conspiracy theory."

Senior US officials have been debating the issue for more than a month.

According to a readout of a US meeting with NATO officials in October obtained the US has conducted military planning exercises in conjunction with European leaders.

Officials discussed the necessity to replenish stocks amid growing tensions in Ukraine during the meeting. Some European politicians claimed that NATO's armaments inventories were running low and that the alliance needs to potentially combine resources to help safeguard itself. According to the readout, Polish authorities reaffirmed the need for NATO forces to maintain their force levels on the eastern front as long as the war lasted. The Pentagon did not respond quickly to the readout.

The hours and days following the initial report of the strike on Poland will be crucial, as

Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon's press secretary, was asked about the United States' security responsibilities. "We have stated unequivocally that we will defend every inch of NATO territory," he said.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del. ), a close supporter of Biden, claimed news of the explosion was announced at the end of Senate Democrats' monthly lunch on Tuesday, calling it a "shocking" discovery.

"I believe it is vital that the Russians rapidly admit this was a horrible mistake, apologize for it, and pay compensation, otherwise this will quickly become a difficult issue," Coons continued.

European officials are likewise concerned, and they blame the Russians. "It is horrible to watch a desperate regime bombing Ukraine's essential infrastructure and hitting allied territory with missiles."

"Victims," said a senior European official who requested anonymity to discuss a volatile situation. "If true, this is yet another escalation by Russia against NATO." Poland is a valuable ally. NATO's solidarity and support for Poland is unwavering."

Biden has been unequivocal that US soldiers will not fight in any combat on Ukrainian land even before Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24. He has also refrained from supplying specific types of weapons to the Ukrainians, fearing that they will be used to launch attacks within Russian territory, escalating the conflict. Biden and other NATO leaders have frequently cautioned Russia not to target NATO members, and the Kremlin has so far ignored their warnings.Be careful to avoid such direct conflict.

The explosion in Poland occurred amid a volley of Russian missiles fired this week against Ukrainian energy and electricity infrastructure across the country, knocking off power in Kyiv and the recently regained city of Kherson. Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov tweeted that 73 of Russia's approximately 90 cruise missiles were shot down throughout the evening, along with 10 more suicide drones.

The strikes come only one day before the next virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a group of 50 countries that meets monthly to coordinate the next steps in arming and supporting Ukraine.

The Biden administration requested $37.7 billion in Ukraine money from Congress on Tuesday.

supplementary package, with $21.7 billion going directly to weaponry for Kyiv and restocking US warehouses after eight months of supplying ammunition and equipment to Ukraine. Another $7 billion will be handed to the White House to draw down current US weaponry and ammunition supplies for speedy delivery to Ukraine.