Russia Strikes Near Poland Border as Ukraine Warns of New Campaign Against Gas Stations

KYIV, Ukraine — Russia launched a fresh wave of drone attacks across Ukraine overnight, hitting an area just kilometres from the Polish border and damaging infrastructure near one of the country’s busiest crossings into the European Union, according to Ukrainian and Polish officials.

The strike near the Yahodyn–Dorohusk border crossing targeted a truck and nearby civilian facilities, including a fuel station, prompting a temporary suspension of border operations. The crossing is a vital gateway for commercial freight and humanitarian supplies between Ukraine and Poland, making it one of the country’s most strategically important logistical routes.

Poland responded by scrambling military aircraft, activating air defence systems and issuing air-raid alerts across several districts bordering Ukraine. Officials later said no Russian drones entered Polish airspace and border traffic resumed after the immediate threat had passed.

The border attack came as Ukraine accused Moscow of expanding a campaign against civilian gas stations, with officials saying Russian forces have increasingly targeted fuel infrastructure far from the front lines. Earlier this week, drones struck three Ukrnafta petrol stations in Kyiv over two consecutive days, killing two people and injuring several others in what city authorities described as deliberate attacks on facilities serving ordinary residents.

Ukraine’s state-owned energy company said employees and customers were able to evacuate after air-raid sirens sounded, limiting casualties despite extensive damage to buildings and fuel equipment. Company executives insisted the stations had no military value, describing the strikes as attacks on civilian infrastructure rather than legitimate military targets.

Russia has not publicly commented on the strikes against Kyiv’s fuel stations. However, Moscow has repeatedly argued that infrastructure supporting Ukraine’s military logistics constitutes a lawful target. Following Sunday’s border strike, Russian officials claimed the operation was aimed at transport infrastructure used to move European military cargo into Ukraine, an assertion Kyiv rejects.

The broader overnight assault was among the largest seen in recent months, with Ukrainian officials reporting hundreds of drones and missiles launched across multiple regions. Western cities that had previously experienced fewer attacks were increasingly affected, including railway infrastructure linking Ukraine with neighbouring European countries. A Kyiv–Warsaw train was also struck near the border after passengers had been evacuated, leaving no reported casualties.

The attacks arrive at a sensitive moment in the war, as Ukraine continues its own long-range drone campaign against Russian oil refineries and fuel depots. Kyiv says those operations are intended to weaken Russia’s ability to finance and sustain its invasion, while Moscow accuses Ukraine of targeting civilian energy facilities inside Russia.

For Poland and its NATO allies, the latest strike underscores growing fears that Russia is increasingly testing the security of Ukraine’s western borders without directly crossing into alliance territory. As critical trade corridors and civilian infrastructure come under mounting pressure, the war’s economic and security consequences are being felt ever closer to the European Union’s frontier.