Russia strikes train near Poland border after Johnson and EU officials pass through

September 13, 2026 at 09:05 PM2 min

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A Russian strike hit a train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and top European security officials had passed through the area. No casualties were reported after the strike, which hit the train's engine. Russia said it struck railway infrastructure in western Ukraine, while Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a Russian drone had struck 800 meters from the Polish border.

Key Facts

Boris Johnson and top European security officials, including the UK's Jonathan Powell, had passed along the same railway line on their way back from a conference in Kyiv.
Russia said Sunday it struck railway infrastructure in western Ukraine.
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a Russian drone had struck 800 meters from the Polish border.
Earlier this month, six employees of the state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia were killed after a depot was hit in Kyiv.
In January, President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned as terrorism a Russian strike on a crowded passenger train in the north-eastern Kharkiv region that left five people dead.

The Strike

A Russian strike hit a train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other top European officials had passed through. No casualties were reported after the Russian strike, which hit the train's engine. Johnson and some of Europe's most senior security advisers, including the UK's Jonathan Powell, had passed along the same line on their way back from a conference in the capital, Kyiv. Russia said Sunday it struck railway infrastructure in western Ukraine.

Reactions

Boris Johnson said, "I don't know what warped logic drove Putin to blow up a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning" and asked, "When are we going to give them the air defences they need?" Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a Russian drone had struck 800 meters from the Polish border.

Railway Attacks

Russia has in recent months carried out a number of deadly attacks targeting Ukraine's trains, railway depots and other transport facilities. Earlier this month, six employees of the state railway company Ukrzaliznytsia were killed after a depot was hit in Kyiv. This week, a female conductor died in a Russian drone attack on a passenger train in southern Ukraine. In January, President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned as terrorism a Russian strike on a crowded passenger train in the north-eastern Kharkiv region that left five people dead. The Russian attacks have significantly damaged Ukraine's vast train network, the main mode of transportation for millions of Ukrainians as all air travel has been suspended since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.