Russian Drone Hits Passenger Train Near Polish Border, Diplomats Narrowly Escape

A Russian drone struck a passenger train on Ukraine's border with Poland on Sunday, just minutes after a separate train carrying former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other European diplomats had passed through the same line, Ukraine's railway operator said.

The attack occurred about 2 kilometres from the Polish border, on a route frequently used by foreign delegations returning from Kyiv. No casualties were reported.

Carl Bildt, the former prime minister of Sweden, said on social media that the train that was hit was not his, but had departed just minutes after his own. He said the train was evacuated as the drone approached and that no one was hurt. Bildt and other politicians were returning to Europe after attending a conference in Kyiv.

Ukraine's railway operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, said on Telegram that it was "entirely possible" the drone's intended target was the diplomatic train, which had left the station earlier than scheduled after timetables were adjusted in real time because of the constant threat of Russian strikes.

Boris Johnson, who was also on the earlier train, condemned the attack as "random and senseless" in a post on Instagram.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski described Russia's increasing attacks on NATO's doorstep as "an escalation."

Earlier on Sunday, a truck less than 1 kilometre from Ukraine's border with Poland was also hit, prompting the Dorohusk-Yahodyn crossing point to briefly halt operations, according to border guards.

Russia's Defence Ministry said it had targeted infrastructure facilitating military cargoes from Europe in Western Ukraine. Moscow has begun targeting Ukraine's border crossings with its Western allies in recent weeks, part of a growing campaign by both sides to erode the other's economic infrastructure more than four years into Russia's invasion.

Strikes near Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

Overnight, hostilities showed no signs of letting up. In the Russian-held part of Ukraine's southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, the head of Russia's state nuclear energy company Rosatom accused Ukraine of striking fuel trucks close to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, Europe's largest. The plant has been controlled by Russia since March 2022 and remains close to the front line. A Ukrainian military spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In Russia itself, the mayor of the city of Nizhnekamsk, in the Volga River region of Tatarstan, said that "civilian and industrial" targets in the city had been struck by Ukrainian drones, causing at least two deaths and several more injuries. Mayor Radmir Belyaev did not clarify which targets had been struck, but the city hosts a major oil refinery which has been attacked in the past.

Ukrainian authorities did not immediately comment on the strike on Nizhnekamsk, but did say they had struck another refinery in the southern Krasnodar region.