Polish authorities are set to press charges against two Ukrainians for allegedly carrying out a terrorist-sabotage act on behalf of Russia, causing an explosion that damaged a key railway track used for shipments to Ukraine. The suspects fled to Belarus following the attack on the rail line connecting Warsaw to the Ukrainian border. It is claimed by Polish officials that the two individuals had been in cooperation with Russian secret services for an extended period.
Authorities have detained several other individuals in connection with the railway blast, but no further details were disclosed. Prime Minister Donald Tusk labeled the incident as an unprecedented act of sabotage, while Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski described it as an act of state terror.
The explosion, which occurred near Mika, approximately 100 kilometers southeast of Warsaw, resulted in track damage without any reported injuries. Additionally, power lines were destroyed in a separate incident near Puławy, around 50 kilometers from Lublin in eastern Poland over the weekend.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy voiced his belief in a Russian connection to the sabotage, stating that only Russians would have an interest in such actions. He pledged Ukraine’s cooperation with Poland and proposed the formation of a joint Polish-Ukrainian task force to counter Russian sabotage.
In response to the attack, the Polish government announced plans to deploy up to 10,000 soldiers to safeguard critical infrastructure in the country. Sikorski also announced the closure of the last remaining Russian consulate in Gdansk, Poland, as a part of the response to the incident.
The Russian government, in turn, stated that it would reduce Poland’s diplomatic presence in Russia, following the closure of the consulates in Krakow and Poznan in recent years. The Russian embassy in Warsaw remains operational. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov expressed regret over the deteriorating relations with Poland and the Polish authorities’ decisions regarding diplomatic ties.
