Explosion Rips Through Russian Military Train Close To Moscow

A freight train exploded at a railway station in the Moscow region, according to Ukraine.

Ukraine's intelligence agency the GUR said that the incident on Friday morning destroyed carriages that were used to "provide logistics" for Russia's army and posted a video of a nighttime blast by railway tracks at the station in Voskresensk.

Moscow Railway, a branch of Russian Railways, said according to RIA Novosti that there were burning carriages at the station but that the incident was part of a fire safety drill.

Newsweek has contacted Moscow Railway for comment.

Trains are seen in Moscow on May 13, 2022. Ukraine's military posted video it said showed an explosion targeting a military goods train in the Moscow region on December 27, 2024. NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/Getty Images

Why It Matters

Often without claiming responsibility, Kyiv has used missiles and drones to target infrastructure used by Moscow's military machine for its aggression in Ukraine.

But Friday's explosion is the latest reported incident to hit Russia's railways as well, which range from blasts to derailments.

The spate of trains targeted in unexplained incidents has sparked speculation about sabotage. In September, a freight train came off its tracks in the Novy Oskol district of Belgorod region, whose governor said the incident was caused by "illegal interference."

In July, video on social media showed the smoking wreckage of a derailed train near the Lebedinsky mining and processing plant in Stary Oskol, another city in Belgorod.

Also in July a freight train derailed at a railway station in the Moscow region, while the previous month, five fuel tanks derailed near the port of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad region, which hosts one of Russia's largest oil terminals.

Russia has itself been accused of sabotage and arson attacks on sites in the U.K., Germany and the Baltic States.

What To Know

Ukraine's military intelligence agency the GUR said that an explosion took place around 1 a.m. Friday morning at the railway station in the village of Voskresensk, about 70 miles southeast of the Kremlin.

It posted video of a nighttime blast filmed from a distance next to a statement that said the explosion destroyed carriages used by Russia for logistics for its army and that the scale of the damage was still being established.

It said that Russian state media was "trying to hide" the results of the incident, which illustrated "the fear of the Kremlin leaders of internal resistance to Putin's regime and loss of control inside the country is seriously growing."

State media outlet RIA Novosti reported that Telegram channels had speculated about the burning carriages but said that these reports "were not accurate" and that images at the site were taken "during a planned exercise" by fire prevention teams, citing Moscow Railways.

What People Are Saying

Ukraine's GUR: "An explosion occurred at the railway station of the village of Voskresensk, Moscow region, which destroyed the carriages of a freight train — the aggressor state used them to provide logistics for the Russian occupation army."

Moscow Railway (MZ) said according to RIA Novosti: "Information about burning wagons of a freight train at the station Voskresensk... does not correspond to reality."

What Happens Next

Ukraine's military intelligence has not given details of the cause of the explosion but its statement suggests that sabotage attacks on Russian territory are likely to continue.

It follows warnings by MI6 and the CIA over Russian sabotage attacks on Europe amid speculation over whether they will increase in the coming months.