FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the incident an act of sabotage...
A major explosion has been recorded on a railway line connecting Warsaw and Lublin, which is used to transport military goods and aid to Ukraine.
The news has been confirmed by Polish authorities, writes "CNN".
The damage near Mika, about 100 km southeast of Warsaw, was discovered at around 07:30 local time on Sunday by a train driver who was forced to make an emergency stop.
Immediately afterwards, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reacted, calling the event an unprecedented act of sabotage.
Tusk wrote in a post on X that the attack directly targeted the security of the Polish state and its civilians.
" Damage and destruction were also identified along the same road further along the railway line ," he said.
At a press conference on Monday afternoon, Poland's interior minister, Marcin Kieręński, said that two incidents occurred over the weekend, one confirmed act of sabotage and one that was considered almost sabotage.
So far, no arrests have been made in connection with the incidents.
Regarding this serious event, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that threats to Europe's security are "real and growing."
" The continent urgently needs to increase the capacity to protect our skies and infrastructure ," she said.
Estonian Prime Minister Kristian Michal also strongly condemned the damage to the train tracks, writing in X that his country stands with Poland.
" Those behind hostile acts against members of the (European Union) and NATO must be exposed. Our response must be united ," Michal said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha expressed solidarity with Poland, offering support if needed and suggesting that Russia may have played a role in the incident.
" We hope that the investigation will provide answers and we are also ready to help if asked. It could have been another hybrid attack from Russia, to test the answers. If it is true, they should be strong ," Sybiha said.
Tusk vowed that his country "will catch the perpetrators, whoever they are," without saying who he believed was responsible for the damage.
The explosion, which caused no injuries according to Tusk, is the latest in a string of incidents in Europe that have left the continent on high alert.
Several European countries have reported intrusions into their airspace in recent months, with most blaming Russia. The Kremlin has denied involvement.
A few days ago, the European Commission adopted stricter rules for issuing visas to Russian citizens, citing security risks related to Russia's war in Ukraine as the reason for this.
" We are now faced with unprecedented disruptions of drone flights and sabotage on our soil. We have a duty to protect our citizens ," Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said in a statement.
A research paper by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) suggested that Russia is conducting a “campaign of sabotage, vandalism, espionage, and covert actions” to destabilize European governments.
" Incidents within this suspected campaign include deliberate damage to undersea cables, targeting of telecommunications towers, and arson plots ," the IISS said.
In an interview with Polish portal Polsat News on Sunday, Poland's Deputy Interior Minister, Maciej Duszczyk, said that his country has been facing various acts of sabotage for some time, according to the Polish Press Agency (PAP).
Last year, a massive fire destroyed a shopping mall in Warsaw. Polish authorities announced in May that it was the result of arson ordered by Russian intelligence services, although Russia had previously denied accusations of orchestrating arson and sabotage operations across Europe.
" The country's Internal Security Agency is working together with the police, the prosecutor's office and the railway services to investigate the case ," Polish politician Tomasz Siemoniak said on the X show.
It is learned that Poland's National Security Committee will hold a meeting on Tuesday morning, with military commanders, service heads and the president's representative present.
Lini një Përgjigje