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Russia attacked Ukrainian rail infrastructure more than 1,000 times in 2025

Russia carried out nearly 1,200 attacks on Ukraine’s railway infrastructure in 2025 — more than in 2023 and 2024 combined — according to the director of Ukrainian Railways Company Oleh Yakovenko.

Speaking at the 8th International Conference “Railways of Ukraine: Development and Investment,” Yakovenko said Russia has increasingly targeted rail infrastructure, which plays a key role in transporting cargo, including military aid. Passenger trains have also come under attack, causing civilian casualties.

Since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, around 17,300 railway facilities and pieces of rolling stock have been affected, including 7,300 damaged and 9,900 destroyed. Forty railway workers have been killed while on duty.

In 2025 and the first quarter of 2026 alone, strikes damaged 209 locomotives, 239 passenger carriages, and 371 freight wagons, as well as 86 railway bridges and 50 stations.

The director added that 352 attacks on railway infrastructure were recorded in just the past two months.

Amid the intensifying strikes, the Ukrainian Railways Company has introduced additional safety measures. Trains are halted, and passengers evacuated if aerial threats such as drones are detected nearby, leading to significant delays on some routes.

In regions most affected by fighting — particularly in eastern and southern Ukraine — some rail services have been replaced by buses, which are more flexible and better suited to operating under constant threat.

Trump is inviting Putin to the G20 summit in the US; says it would be probably very helpful

The United States is considering the possibility of inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to the upcoming G20 Leaders' Summit, which is scheduled to take place in December at a resort owned by Donald Trump in Miami. However, no formal invitation has been issued so far.

According to the US Department of State, Russia remains a member of the G20 and is therefore expected to be invited to both ministerial meetings and the leaders’ summit. A senior U.S. official noted that the administration aims to ensure a “successful and productive summit,” signaling openness to Russia’s participation.

At the same time, Trump himself said he was not aware of any official invitation being sent, though he indicated he would not oppose such a move. “If he came it would probably be very helpful,” he said, adding that he believes in maintaining dialogue with all parties.

Russia has not attended G20 meetings in person since 2019—initially due to the COVID-19 pandemic and later because of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the arrest warrant issued for Putin by the International Criminal Court.

Russian overnight strikes on Odesa residential buildings killed a married couple and injured 15

A Russian drone attack on the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa overnight on April 24 killed a married couple and injured at least 15 others, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Emergency services reported that multiple residential buildings were hit. A three-story apartment building sustained a direct strike, injuring six people and sparking a fire. Two additional low-rise residential buildings were also damaged, leaving seven more people injured, with one person rescued from the debris.

In another strike, a two-story residential building was hit, killing two people and injuring one. The victims were later identified as a married couple, both aged 75.

The attack follows a series of similar strikes across Ukraine. On April 23, Russian drone strikes on the city of Dnipro killed three people and injured at least 10, according to regional authorities.

Russian forces have continued to target civilian infrastructure, including residential buildings and energy facilities, throughout the war.