Attack Near the Border with Poland: ISW Warned About a New Russian Tactic Against NATO

UNIAN, photos from Wikipedia, screenshot Moscow is systematically increasing strikes on Ukraine's border infrastructure and intensifying drone provocations near the airspace of NATO countries. This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

In analysts' view, this is how the Kremlin is trying to psychologically pressure the Alliance and weaken its willingness to support Ukraine.

The impetus for the conclusions was the attack on the 13 on September near the Jaydon border checkpoint with Poland. According to available data, European officials who participated in the YES conference were returning from Kyiv through this checkpoint that day.

Among the train's passengers, as ISW notes, were Germany's foreign policy adviser Gunther Sauder, member of the Bundestag Robin Wagener, and former British prime minister Boris Johnson. Ukrzaliznytsia managed to evacuate the train compartment about 15 minutes before impact — after which the drone struck the locomotive.

The gathered evidence "strongly supports" the likelihood that the attack was directed specifically against European officials who were traveling from Ukrainian territory.

"Russia is increasingly striking Ukrainian border checkpoints and intensifying drone incursions into European airspace to intimidate NATO and force the Alliance to abandon its support for Ukraine," the report states.

Experts also recalled that the Jaydon incident is not isolated: since August 2026, Russian forces have struck four border crossings between Ukraine and Moldova. Moreover, 8 in September an enemy UAV nearly hit the President Volodymyr Zelensky's aircraft during its preparation to depart from Chisinau.

The Institute for the Study of War emphasizes the need to revise NATO's air-space defense concept. In particular, consider shooting down Russian targets even over Ukrainian territory before they approach NATO borders, and speed up Ukraine's air defense reinforcement.

Attack on the Ukraine–Poland border

Recall, the drone hit a train in Volyn region, 2 km from the border with Poland. As Ukrzaliznytsia head Oleksandr Peretsovskyi stated, Russia has been targeting railway infrastructure for two consecutive days.

Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga, in turn, reacted to the strike by Russia, calling it de facto Putin-era terror that has already moved up to the doors of the EU and NATO.

Boris Johnson also commented on the attack on the train near the Polish border, calling Putin's actions a manifestation of a "twisted logic" bordering on outright madness. The politician emphasized that such strikes near the borders of the EU and NATO indicate the Kremlin's willingness to take greater risks to intimidate the West.