Ukraine says passenger train headed to Warsaw hit by drone

Reports coming in for today mention that Ukraine’s state railway operator confirmed a strike on a train in Volyn, around two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Ukraine-Poland border in northwestern Ukraine. Russian authorities haven’t yet commented.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski stated there was no violation of the border but called the incident “escalation” by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The drones involved in the incident were Geran-5 jet-powered drones, Polish authorities stated.

Kremlin forces “struck a passenger train locomotive,” the railway firm Ukrzaliznytsia stated on Telegram. “The monitoring group warned the train crew around the threat in advance, thanks to which no one was injured.”

The train, which had 208 people aboard, will continue on to Poland after a delay at the border of around six hours, the Polish railways stated.

Ukrzaliznytsia stated Sunday’s strike was the second this weekend. Sybiha late Saturday posted images of railway facilities struck in Lutsk in northwestern Ukraine and Fastiv, southwest of Kyiv.

“Unable to achieve its goals on the battlefield, Russia attempts to make the entire territory of Ukraine a battlefield and turns to systematic attacks against civilians, trains, and the infrastructure that keeps the country moving,” he stated.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, speaking after an emergency meeting with top civilian and military leaders, stated he can’t exclude the potential of escalation by Russia to Poland’s territories in the next weeks or months, including attempts to disrupt or paralyze border crossings.

Poland will consider how to mobilize allies to be prepared for a common response if needed, he stated.

Images on social media additionally revealed a large fire at a gasoline filling station close to the border crossing between Yahodyn in Ukraine and Dorohusk in Poland.

Margus Tsahkna, Estonia’s foreign affairs minister, stated on X that members of his team had been “stuck at this very border crossing, unable to leave Ukraine because of the Russian drone threat.”

Separately on Sunday, Vilnius airport was shut down for a time as NATO scrambled fighter jets in response to a possible drone sighting in Lithuanian airspace, Reuters noted. The potential drone was later noted to have been a flock of birds.