Russia has launched an attack on a Ukrainian train close to the border with Poland. Following Boris Johnson, European officials have moved on

A Russian drone targets a Ukrainian train close to Poland, just after Boris Johnson and European security officials have traversed the region.

A Russian drone has hit a Ukrainian train close to the border with Poland, just after former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and high-ranking European security officials traveled along the same railroad line.

No casualties were reported following the drone strike on the train's engine in Yahodyn, located approximately 2km (1.2 miles) from the Polish border. Ukrainian authorities announced that all passengers have been successfully evacuated.

Johnson and other European national security advisers, including the UK’s Jonathan Powell, traveled along the same railroad line on a separate train while returning from a security conference in Kyiv.

Russia announced that it had focused on “railway infrastructure” in western Ukraine. Ukraine’s state railroad company, Ukrzaliznytsia, indicated that the diplomatic train could have been the intended target. “It is quite possible that the target of this drone was the diplomatic train,” the company stated.

Former CIA director David Petraeus, who was on a different train at Yahodyn station during the strike, characterized the incident as “terrifying.”

“This attack is the action of a genuinely barbaric leader attempting to terrorize Ukrainian civilians,” Petraeus stated to the New York Times.

Ukrzaliznytsia announced that the diplomatic train left earlier than anticipated due to adjustments in its schedule, prompted by the ongoing risk of Russian strikes.

The company stated that passengers on the train that was struck were instructed to evacuate only 15 minutes prior to the assault by a Russian jet-propelled drone.

Both Ukrainian and Polish officials reported that the drone hit approximately 2 kilometers from the Polish border.

Former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, who also attended the Kyiv conference, stated that passengers on his train were instructed to prepare for evacuation before receiving the message that they could continue their journey. “On the train I was on, we received orders to prepare for evacuation after it had come to a stop.” “However, after several minutes, we were notified that it was clear and we could move forward,” Bildt stated.

His train subsequently arrived safely at the Polish border station in Dorohusk.

Some reports indicated that Bildt was on the same train as Johnson, although Johnson has not verified the specifics of his trip.

Johnson condemned the Russian strike in a post on X. “I cannot comprehend the distorted reasoning that led Putin to detonate a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning.”

He characterized the assault as “the type of random and senseless attack that Ukrainians face daily” and called on Ukraine’s allies to supply additional air defense systems.

Ukraine has consistently requested its allies, especially the United States, for more interceptors to protect against Russian assaults that include ballistic missiles and jet-propelled drones.


Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated that the strikes at Yahodyn indicated that Russian President Vladimir Putin was extending his aggression to the borders of the European Union and NATO.

He referred to the attacks as “barbaric strikes” and reiterated his demand for stricter sanctions against Moscow. Putin must recognize that his acts of aggression will provoke a strong response, raising the costs of war to an intolerable degree for him. This is the sole method to put an end to him,” Sybiha stated.

In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency meeting regarding the incident. “The increase in actions from the Russian side is becoming a reality, and they are approaching our border more and more.”

Johnson and the other European security advisers were returning from the Yalta European Strategy conference in Kyiv, which is an annual gathering of political, business, security, and media figures.

The strike occurs alongside a wave of Russian assaults on Ukraine’s railroad infrastructure, border crossings, and various civilian facilities.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that two individuals lost their lives when Russian drones targeted a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova.

A female conductor lost her life in a Russian drone attack on a passenger train in southern Ukraine, and six employees of Ukrzaliznytsia were killed when a depot was hit in Kyiv earlier this month.

In January, Zelenskyy denounced a Russian attack on a packed passenger train in the northeastern Kharkiv region that resulted in the deaths of five individuals.

Russian attacks have inflicted considerable harm on Ukraine’s railroad network, which continues to serve as the primary mode of transport for millions of Ukrainians, as air travel has been halted since Russia initiated its full-scale invasion in 2022.

European governments have accused Russia of being involved in suspicious incidents occurring within their borders.

Germany last week accused Russia of being responsible for a drone attack at Leipzig airport in August, a claim that Moscow dismissed as “absurd.”

Multiple European nations have reported unusual fires at defense-related sites, with certain governments attributing the incidents to Russia.