WARSAW, Poland — A blast that destroyed a train track in a village south of the country’s capital Warsaw was an act of sabotage, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Nov. 17, one day after the resulting damage was detected on the rail link used to connect Poland with Ukraine.
“Unfortunately, the worst suspicions were confirmed. An act of sabotage occurred on the Warsaw-Lublin line (in the village of Mika). An explosive device detonated and destroyed the railway track,” Tusk said in a post on social media platform X.
The prime minister called the act “an unprecedented act of sabotage” aimed at the Polish state.
“This route is also crucially important for delivering aid to Ukraine. We will catch the perpetrators, whoever they are,” Tusk added.
The blast did not inflict any casualties. Mika is located around 100km (62 miles) from Warsaw.
Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister, has announced his ministry has deployed military services to assist in the investigation and check other segments of the Warsaw-Lublin rail track.
“The military will check a section of around 120 km (along the rail track) which runs to the [Polish-Ukrainian] border in Hrubieszów,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said in an X post.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Poland has positioned itself as one of Kyiv’s staunchest allies, triggering backlash from Russia.
Warsaw has delivered large volumes of weapons and gear to Kyiv, operating a major logistics hub out of the south-eastern city of Rzeszów.
Russia and its ally Belarus have both deployed additional forces and weapons along their borders with Poland.
Numerous European countries, including Poland, have since been targeted by hybrid warfare techniques that include acts of sabotage, cyberattacks, espionage and arson. The continent’s security services believe these are largely inspired by Moscow.
Alongside its efforts to supply weapons to the Ukrainian military, Poland has also pushed for Ukraine’s future accession to NATO.
However, over the past months, Polish authorities have conceded the lack of political momentum in Washington and some European capitals means Ukraine will not receive an invitation to join the alliance anytime soon.
Jaroslaw Adamowski is the Poland correspondent for Defense News.
