A Russian jet-powered drone struck the locomotive of a Kyiv–Warsaw passenger train at Yahodyn on Sunday, about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Polish border, shortly after a diplomatic train carrying former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, UK National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, and other European security officials had left the station. Yahodyn is a major crossing for Western military and humanitarian aid into Ukraine, and Russia has stepped up strikes near it in recent weeks. Passengers on the hit train were evacuated about 15 minutes before impact; no one was hurt.

Ukrzaliznytsia said the diplomatic train had departed Yahodyn earlier than scheduled because of real-time timetable changes under the constant threat of Russian strikes, then crossed safely into Poland at Dorohusk. The company said it was highly probable — elsewhere “quite possible” — that the drone’s intended target had been that diplomatic train. Russia’s defense ministry said it struck “railway infrastructure” in western Ukraine used to move military cargoes from European countries.

Two Strikes Near The Border Crossing

Ukrainian and Polish authorities placed the locomotive hit about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from Polish territory. Separately, the Polish Border Guard reported another Russian drone struck a truck roughly 800 meters (about 0.5 miles) from the Polish border at the Yahodyn–Dorohusk crossing, briefly disrupting operations. A gas station in the town was also damaged in the same morning’s attacks, according to local customs and railway officials.

Bildt, who was on the diplomatic train with Johnson and Powell, posted video from the area and wrote: “This wasn’t our train, but the one just minutes after us by the Polish border crossing. It was evacuated as the Russian drone approached and no one was hurt. Very good safety system. Our train just had an evacuation warning.”

Former CIA director David Petraeus was on a separate train still at Yahodyn when the strike hit. He told The New York Times: “For those who have not been under fire, this was terrifying,” and added, “This is the act of a truly barbaric leader trying to terrorize Ukrainian civilians.”

Witnesses And Official Voices

Johnson wrote on X: “I don’t know what warped logic drove Putin to blow up a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning.” He continued: “What we can say for sure is that this is the kind of random and senseless attack Ukrainians are enduring every day — even on civilian railways.”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the “barbaric strikes” at Yahodyn amounted to Putin’s terror “knocking” directly on the doors of the EU and NATO, and pressed partners for stronger sanctions. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, speaking in Kyiv, said: “This is an escalation. It is another major challenge for Ukraine, but also for the potential future victims of Russian aggression.” Prime Minister Donald Tusk convened an emergency security meeting in Warsaw as Russian actions moved closer to Poland’s frontier.

Late Sunday, UK Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said: “The strikes on Ukraine today, including on the gas works near Nato’s border, serve as a stark reminder of the bombardment that Ukrainians face every day.” He added that “Reckless, dangerous attacks on civilian infrastructure so close to Poland also underline the wider security threat Russia poses,” and that Britain continues to stand firm with Ukraine while working with allies to bolster European security.

A Wider Push Against Rails And Crossings

The Yahodyn hits fit a recent run of Russian attacks on passenger trains, depots, and frontier posts. On Sept. 8, drones struck a Dnipro–Zaporizhzhia passenger train twice; passengers were evacuated, but a conductor who returned to the train was killed. Days earlier, a drone attack on a Kherson-bound passenger train injured a railway worker. On Sept. 9, drones hit the Starokozache crossing with Moldova, killing two civilians and injuring three. At the start of September, a strike on a Kyiv railway depot killed six Ukrzaliznytsia employees.

Moscow’s Line And The Rail Spine

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that Russian forces have been conducting operations across the entire territory of Ukraine and will continue to do so. Ukraine’s vast train network remains the main long-distance transport spine for millions of civilians while commercial aviation stays grounded under wartime restrictions.