KYIV, Ukraine — A Russian drone has struck a Ukrainian train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and senior European security officials passed through the area on another train returning from Kyiv.
The drone struck the engine of a stationary train at Yahodyn, about 2km from the Polish border, but no casualties were reported. Ukrainian authorities said passengers had been evacuated before the strike.
Johnson and other European national security advisers, including the UK’s Jonathan Powell, had travelled along the same railway line after attending a conference in Kyiv.
The incident has raised concerns over the growing risks to Ukraine’s railway network and the proximity of Russian attacks to the borders of European Union and NATO member states.
Ukrainian railway company raises concern over diplomatic train
Russia said its forces had targeted railway infrastructure in western Ukraine.
However, Ukraine’s state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia suggested the possibility that the train could have been connected to the European officials travelling through the area.
“Quite possibly, the target of this drone could have been the diplomatic train,” the railway company said.
Ukrzaliznytsia said the train that was hit had departed the station earlier than originally scheduled because of a timetable change prompted by continuing threats of Russian strikes.
The company said passengers had received an evacuation order only 15 minutes before the attack by what it described as a Russian jet-propelled drone.
Both Ukrainian and Polish authorities said the strike occurred approximately 2km from the Polish border.
Petraeus describes strike as ‘terrifying’
Former CIA director David Petraeus, who was travelling on another train at Yahodyn station when the strike occurred, described the incident as terrifying.
Speaking to The New York Times, Petraeus accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of deliberately seeking to intimidate Ukrainian civilians.
“This is the act of a truly barbaric leader trying to terrorize Ukrainian civilians,” Petraeus said.
The former CIA chief was among passengers travelling through the railway network as European officials returned from Kyiv.
Carl Bildt recalls evacuation alert
Former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, who had also attended the conference in Kyiv, said passengers on his train were instructed to prepare for a possible evacuation after the train stopped.
“On the train I was on we received order to prepare evacuation after it had stopped. But after a number of minutes we were informed that it was clear and we could proceed,” Bildt said.
His train later arrived safely at Dorohusk, the Polish border station.
Some reports suggested Bildt was travelling on the same train as Johnson, although Johnson has not publicly confirmed details of his journey.
Johnson condemns Russian strike
Johnson criticised the attack in a post on X, questioning why Russia had targeted a stationary Ukrainian locomotive so close to the Polish border.
He described the strike as an example of the attacks Ukrainian civilians face regularly and called on Kyiv’s allies to provide additional air-defence systems.
“I don’t know what warped logic drove Putin to blow up a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning,” Johnson wrote.
He said the incident demonstrated the need for Ukraine’s allies to urgently provide the country with the air defences required to protect civilians and critical infrastructure.
Ukraine has repeatedly appealed to its partners, particularly the United States, for additional interceptors to counter Russian attacks involving ballistic missiles and fast-moving drones.
Ukraine calls for stronger response
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned what he described as “barbaric strikes” near the Ukraine-Poland border.
Sybiha said the attack demonstrated the growing proximity of Russia’s war to the EU and NATO.
“Putin needs to understand that his barbarism will be met with decisive action that increases the cost of war for him to an unacceptable level. This is the only way to stop him,” he said.
He also renewed calls for additional sanctions against Moscow.
Poland holds emergency meeting
The strike prompted an emergency response in neighbouring Poland.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting to discuss the latest developments and the implications of Russian attacks close to Polish territory.
“The escalation of the actions from the Russian side is becoming a reality, and they are getting closer and closer to our border,” Tusk said.
The proximity of the strike to Poland has added to concerns about the potential for the war in Ukraine to create wider security risks along NATO’s eastern flank.
European officials were returning from Kyiv conference
Johnson and other senior European security advisers were travelling back from the Yalta European Strategy (YES) conference in Kyiv, an annual gathering involving political leaders, business figures, security experts and media representatives.
The incident occurred as the officials were travelling through one of Ukraine’s key railway corridors towards Poland.
The fact that the strike occurred shortly after senior European figures had passed through the area has drawn particular attention, although there has been no confirmed evidence that they were specifically targeted.
Russian attacks increasingly hit railway infrastructure
The Yahodyn incident forms part of a wider pattern of Russian attacks affecting Ukraine’s railway system and other transport infrastructure.
Ukrainian authorities have reported a series of attacks on trains, railway depots, petrol stations and border crossings.
Earlier in the week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said two people were killed after Russian drones struck a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova.
A female train conductor was also reported killed in a Russian drone attack on a passenger train in southern Ukraine.
At the beginning of the month, six Ukrzaliznytsia employees were killed when a railway depot in Kyiv was struck.
In January, Zelensky condemned a Russian attack on a crowded passenger train in the Kharkiv region that killed five people.
Ukraine’s rail network remains critical
Ukraine’s railway network has become an essential lifeline since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
With civilian air travel suspended, trains remain the main form of long-distance transport for millions of Ukrainians, as well as a key means of moving humanitarian supplies and other essential goods.
Repeated attacks have damaged railway infrastructure across the country, increasing the risks faced by passengers and railway workers.
The latest strike at Yahodyn also highlights the strategic importance of western Ukraine’s rail connections to neighbouring European countries.
Growing accusations over incidents in Europe
The latest attack comes amid broader accusations by European governments that Russia is increasingly involved in suspicious incidents beyond Ukraine.
Germany last week blamed Russia for a drone attack at Leipzig Airport in August. Moscow rejected the allegation as “absurd”.
Several European countries have also reported suspicious fires and other incidents at defence-related facilities, with some governments accusing Russia of involvement.
Moscow has denied responsibility for such allegations.
