Ukraine War · 13 September, 2026 · 3 min read
Russian Drone Attack Evacuates Train Carrying Boris Johnson Near Poland Border
The train carrying Boris Johnson was hit near Yahodyn, near the Polish border. All passengers evacuated; no injuries reported.
Whether Russia is accused or treated as confirmed.
6 of 7 outlets skipped it: putin warned European troops would mean direct conflict with Russia.
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Same story, two versions
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BBC
“Russia hits Ukrainian train shortly after Boris Johnson and top European officials leave station”Read the original ↗
Al Jazeera
“Poland and Ukraine have accused Russia of “escalation” following Russian strikes on a train close to the two countries’ border.”Read the original ↗
The BBC presents Russian responsibility as fact, while Al Jazeera frames it as Poland and Ukraine's accusations.
Drone hits diplomatic train
A Russian drone attack struck a train slightly behind one carrying former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Sweden's Carl Bildt as it traveled in Ukraine near the Poland border, prompting an evacuation of the train Johnson was traveling on.
“around 5:00 a.m., a train that was slightly behind him was hit”
The ABC report said the attacked train was hit around 5:00 a.m. on Sunday, with the locomotive targeted in Volyn, and it added that there was no information about any casualties.
Ukrainian authorities reported that 206 people were aboard the attacked train and stressed that there were no injuries, while the ABC account said videos shared on social networks showed passengers fleeing the scene.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte later said the strikes on Sunday on trains in Ukraine close to NATO territory again showed Putin's desperation, as Poland pledged increased security after two drones landed within kilometers of Polish territory.
In a separate account of the same border-area incident, Al Jazeera said a Kyiv-Warsaw passenger train was struck just two kilometres (1.2 miles) from the Polish border, but there were no reported casualties.A
Officials trade blame
NATO chief Mark Rutte said at NATO's political headquarters in Brussels that the strikes yesterday on trains in Ukraine close to NATO territory again show Putin's desperation and also his desire to sow fear and terror.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned Sunday that “These coming weeks and months will be a time of very intensified actions on the Russian side,” adding that the escalation “will also affect our territory.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denounced the attack as “deliberate,” arguing that “Ukrainian men and women fight day by day precisely to prevent these attacks from reaching further into Europe.”
In a separate framing of the same incident, Al Jazeera reported that Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said the “escalation” should lead allies to “double” their support for Ukraine, while also quoting Zelenskyy’s claim that Moscow had “deliberately” struck the locomotive.A
The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russian forces were operating “across the entire territory of Ukraine and continues to do so — and will continue to do so,” and he said any country could use its influence on the Kyiv regime to encourage flexibility.
Support, deterrence, and risk
After the drone strikes near the Ukraine-Poland border, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte pledged to increase support for Ukraine and bolster the 32-nation alliance’s own defenses along its long eastern border with Russia.
“We strongly condemn the latest Russian strikes near the Ukraine-Poland border”
Poland warned of escalation after Russian strikes near the frontier, with Tusk saying Moscow appears poised to intensify its campaign against Ukraine’s borders with European countries and with the ABC7 Los Angeles account describing Russia’s broader air campaign using ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones.
The ABC7 Los Angeles report said Russia shot down 389 Ukrainian drones during the night and that its air defenses shot down or suppressed 409 Russian drones of various types overnight, while Ukraine said Russia had attacked with 453 drones in total.
In the diplomatic track, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow is open to restarting peace talks in autumn featuring Russia, Ukraine and the U.S., and Al Jazeera reported Peskov saying “We do not rule out such a possibility; we are talking about the foreseeable future,” in October.A
The EU also tied the incident to support for Kyiv, with Anadolu reporting EU Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni saying “We strongly condemn the latest Russian strikes near the Ukraine-Poland border, including the attack on a passenger train,” and pointing to the EU’s decision to approve €6.1 billion ($7 billion) in support for Ukraine's air and missile defense.