Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has accused two Ukrainian men of carrying out railway sabotage on behalf of Russian intelligence. Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Tusk described the incidents as “unprecedented” and a serious threat to national security.
The attacks targeted a strategic rail route used for aid deliveries to Ukraine. In the first incident, a military-grade explosive device detonated under a freight train on Saturday night, causing minor damage. The second involved a steel clamp attached to the tracks, risking a derailment. Tusk said the aim was to cause a “railway catastrophe”.
The suspects, whose identities are known but not public, are believed to have crossed into Poland from Belarus shortly before the attacks and returned to Belarus afterwards. One was previously convicted for sabotage in Ukraine, and the other came from the occupied Donetsk region.
Tusk claimed the recruitment of Ukrainian citizens by Russia was intended to stir anti-Ukrainian sentiments, particularly dangerous in Poland, home to many Ukrainian migrants. He noted a wider pattern of Russian sabotage across Europe, with 55 people detained in Poland for related offences.
The Kremlin denied the allegations, calling them “Russophobia”. Poland is seeking diplomatic responses from Belarus and Russia, demanding the suspects be surrendered.
