September 14, 2026 | 03:55 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Russia launched two drone strikes on western Ukraine, close to its border with NATO member Poland, Ukrainian and Polish authorities said on Sunday.According to DW, one of the drones hit a locomotive of a passenger train at the Yahodyn railway station in the Volyn region, some 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) from the border crossing."The monitoring team gave the train crew advanced warning, and thanks to that, no one was injured," Ukrainian railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia said in online post.Separately, Poland's PKP Intercity confirmed that they have taken control of the affected train following the attack in the Ukrainian territory."The train is carrying 206 people. There are no Polish citizens among the passengers," the operator said online. "After completing customs clearance, it will continue its journey towards Warsaw."Senior Western figures said to be at station before train strikeUkrzaliznytsia later said that senior Western figures, including former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former CIA Director David Petraeus, were at the station shortly before the Warsaw-bound train was struck."Shortly before the locomotive was hit at the Ukrainian-Polish border, a diplomatic train was at Yagodyn station," Ukrzaliznytsia said in a statement. "There were, among others, security advisers from several EU member states and former European leaders on board, including former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. In another train that was at Yagodyn station at the very moment of the attack was former CIA Director David Petraeus."Johnson didn't specifically mention that he had been near the vicinity of the attack, but called for more action to be taken against Russian President Vladimir Putin, once reports of the attack emerged."I don't know what warped logic drove Putin to blow up a stationary Ukrainian locomotive on the Polish border this morning," Johnson said."When are we going to give them the air defenses they need? Why won't we unfreeze Putin's cash and give it to Ukraine? There is more than €140 billion [$163 billion] in a Belgian bank account — and about 10 billion poundsterling [€11.7 billion or 13.5 billion] in London," Johnson said, adding that Britain could lead the way in this regard."This wasn’t our train, but the one just minutes after us by the border crossing. It was evacuated as the drone approached and no one was hurt," Carl Bildt, Sweden's former prime minister, said on X.Poland says attacks on its territory cannot be ruled outPoland's Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski urged for increased support for Ukraine, calling the incident an "escalation.""This is an escalation, this is another great challenge for Ukraine and for the hypothetical future victims of Russian aggression and this means that we should double our efforts to support victims of aggression," Sikorski told a press briefing. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk chaired an emergency meeting on Sunday to address Russian drone attacks near the border and warned the country must be prepared for the possibility that drones could target Polish territory."The coming weeks and months will be a period of very intensive actions on the Russian side," Tusk said, adding Poland "cannot rule out that this escalation will also affect our territory."Zelenskyy: Locomotive 'deliberately burned'On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the locomotive was "deliberately burned" and a gas station damaged in Volyn."It is precisely to prevent these strikes from spreading further into Europe that Ukrainian men and women fight every day, give their lives, and do not allow the aggression to expand," he said.Moscow did not immediately comment on the reports.Ukrainian officials also reported another drone strike on Yahodyn overnight, some half a mile (800 meters) from the Polish border.The border with Poland serves as essential transit point for military and humanitarian aid.'Putin's terror 'knocking' directly on the doors' — Ukrainian foreign ministerCommenting on the Yahodyn incident, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the "barbaric" attacks were more than "just a continuation of its attacks on our state borders.""This is Putin's terror 'knocking' directly on the doors of the EU and NATO. Russian barbarians are at your gate, dear partners," he said in an English-language post on X.He urged Ukraine's Western allies to make Russia "feel the consequences of its terror. Not just half-decisions, but uncompromising, powerful steps. Full trade embargo. Full entry bans. Full sanctions on the military-industrial complex."Putin needs to understand that his barbarism will be met with decisive action that increases the cost of war for him to an unacceptable level," he added.Read: Russia's Drone War Comes to Moldova and RomaniaClick here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News
