Train struck near Ukraine-Poland border, shortly after Boris Johnson and European officials passed through

A Russian drone struck a train in the Yahodyn area, near the Ukraine-Poland border, just minutes after former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and senior European security officials had traveled on the same railway line.

The target of the attack was the locomotive, and Ukrainian authorities reported no casualties. All passengers were evacuated from the train after the incident.

The train carrying the European delegation had passed earlier along that route, as Johnson, other European security advisers, and British official Jonathan Powell were returning from a conference held in Kyiv.

Moscow stated it had struck “railway infrastructure” in western Ukraine. Ukraine’s state railway company, Ukrzaliznytsia, said the possibility could not be ruled out that the drone had targeted the diplomatic train.

According to Ukrzaliznytsia, the train transporting the European officials departed the station ahead of schedule, following a change in planning and due to the constant threat of Russian attacks.

The order to evacuate passengers from the attacked train was given just 15 minutes before the strike, authorities said.

At the moment of the attack, former CIA Director David Petraeus was also at the Yahodyn station, traveling on a different train.

Ukrainian and Polish authorities confirmed that the Russian drone strike occurred about two kilometers from the Polish border.

Johnson: A senseless attack

After the incident, Boris Johnson described the attack as senseless and called on Ukraine’s allies to boost the country’s air defense capabilities.

The former British Prime Minister stressed that attacks on civilian infrastructure have become part of the daily reality Ukrainians face.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, called the strike “barbaric.” According to him, attacks near the Polish border prove that the Russian threat is moving ever closer to the territory of the European Union and NATO.

Tusk calls urgent meeting in Poland

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened the government for an extraordinary meeting to review the situation.

“The escalation of actions by the Russian side is becoming a reality and is getting closer and closer to our border,” Tusk declared.

Johnson and the other European officials were returning from the Yalta European Strategy (YES) conference, the annual event held in Kyiv that brings together political leaders, security experts, business representatives, and journalists.

Increased strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure

The attack came at a time when Russia appears to have intensified strikes on railway lines and other strategic facilities in Ukraine.

In recent days, drone attacks have been reported against border points, trains, and railway depots. In southern Ukraine, a female railway worker was killed when a passenger train was hit, while earlier six railway workers were killed during an attack on a depot in Kyiv.

The war has caused enormous damage to Ukraine’s railway network. However, the railways remain one of the main means of transport for millions of citizens, as civilian flights have been suspended since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.

Various European countries have meanwhile reported other suspicious incidents on their territories, some of which they have attributed to Russian activity. Moscow has denied the accusations.