Maria Zakharova urges Western politicians to assess risks before visiting Kyiv
Zakharova said railways serving Ukraine’s armed forces are legitimate targets after a drone hit a passenger train minutes after a diplomatic train passed.
Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, told Russian media that Western politicians and diplomats should carry out their own risk assessments before travelling to Kyiv.
Her comments came after a Russian drone struck a passenger train on Sunday, only minutes after a diplomatic train that included former British prime minister Boris Johnson, former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt and former CIA director David Petraeus had passed.
Targeting of transport infrastructure
Zakharova said that railways and other transport infrastructure that serve the Ukrainian armed forces are legitimate targets for Russian forces. She also recalled that Russia issued a warning in May for foreign diplomats to leave Kyiv because of Russian strikes on the Ukrainian military‑industrial complex.
The incident was described in reports as occurring soon after the diplomatic train left the station. "After Boris Johnson left the train station, the Russian drone attacked the train at the Polish border."
Officials in Kyiv and Western capitals have not been quoted in these reports in detail here; Zakharova's statement frames the Moscow position that visits by Western figures carry assessable security risks amid ongoing strikes on transport and military infrastructure.
Photo: press material from the event
