A Russian drone strike near the Ukrainian-Polish border may have targeted a train carrying former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former CIA Director David Petraeus and other senior European figures, according to reports cited by The Guardian.
The train, which also carried former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt and several European security advisers, had crossed the border shortly before a Ukrainian locomotive was struck near the Dorohusk-Yahodyn border crossing between Ukraine and Poland.
There is speculation that the diplomatic train itself may have been among the intended targets of the Russian drone attack. Railway officials said the train had departed earlier than scheduled after its timetable was adjusted in real time because of the continuing threat of Russian attacks.
Johnson later condemned the strike, describing it as part of the attacks Ukrainians face on a daily basis.
“I don’t know what twisted logic led Putin to blow up a Ukrainian locomotive stopped at the Polish border this morning,” Johnson wrote on X.
He said the incident demonstrated that civilian railway infrastructure remains vulnerable to Russian attacks.
Massive Russian strikes hit Ukraine
The strike near Poland came as part of a wider overnight Russian assault on Ukraine involving more than 450 drones and missiles.
At least six people were killed and more than 40 wounded, while Ukraine’s Air Force said it had shot down or neutralized 405 drones and four missiles.
Western Ukraine was among the areas heavily affected, raising particular concern because of its proximity to the European Union and NATO borders.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha warned that the attacks were bringing the consequences of Russia’s war increasingly close to Western territory.
“This is Putin’s terror knocking directly on the doors of the EU and NATO. Russian barbarians are at your gates, dear partners,” Sybiha wrote on X.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy likewise said Ukraine was fighting to prevent Russia’s aggression from spreading further into Europe.
Poland raises alarm over possible escalation
The developments triggered an urgent response in Poland. Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting and warned that the intensification of Russian attacks could eventually affect Polish territory.
“The coming weeks and months will be a period of very intensive actions by the Russian side,” Tusk said.
He added that Warsaw could not rule out the possibility that the escalation could reach Poland.
According to Tusk, Polish security services and intelligence agencies from allied countries had previously warned that Russia could attempt to target Ukrainian border infrastructure.
“We knew that the Russian plan would include an attempt to obstruct, paralyze and possibly even destroy Ukrainian border crossings,” he said.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski responded briefly after the attack, saying: “Putin is escalating.”
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said Poland was treating the developments with the utmost seriousness.
“Russia is the enemy of the free world,” Kierwiński said.
Moscow acknowledges railway strikes
Moscow has confirmed that Russian forces struck railway infrastructure in western Ukraine but claimed that the facilities were being used to transport military cargo supplied by European countries.
The reported presence of senior Western figures on a train traveling through the region has nevertheless raised fresh concerns about the security of diplomatic and civilian transport routes near Ukraine’s borders with NATO member states.
The incident adds to growing fears in Warsaw and other European capitals that Russia’s campaign against Ukrainian infrastructure could increasingly create risks beyond Ukraine’s borders.
