By Rostyslav Averchuk
Lviv (EFE).- Fastiv, a key logistical hub near Kyiv, Ukraine, has suffered massive strikes for three nights in a row as Russia attempts to paralyze the country’s railways, which are vital for civilian travel, grain exports, and military logistics.
The railway station was destroyed in the attack on Dec. 6 against the city, which lies at the intersection of railroads to Kyiv, Odesa (south), and Lviv (west), resulting in multiple delays and rerouting of dozens of trains.
“Everything burnt down but the key thing, a miracle, is that everyone survived,” Anna Skurska, a 30-year-old native of Fastiv whose father works at the station, told EFE after the attacks continued on the two following nights and also targeted several enterprises dealing with suburban train travel and refrigerated cargo shipments.
Under attack
While the nearby capital is attacked by Russia almost daily, the strikes on the much smaller city of Skurska came as a shock to locals. Skurska spoke of an «emptiness inside» immediately after the attack.
However, Fastiv’s role as a railway hub makes it a key target as Russia amplifies its strikes against Ukraine’s vital infrastructure, having hit other hubs such as Zhmerynka and Koziatyn in attacks that have intensified since July.
Photos published by the emergency service showed that the suburban train depot was targeted, and several locomotives were badly damaged.
It is the locomotives that Russia wants to destroy most of all, argued Sergiy Bezkhrestnov, a military blogger and expert in drone warfare.
“It is hard to destroy the railroads, which are repaired in a matter of hours. Yet if there are no locomotives left or people to guide them, the railways can get paralyzed,” he warned in his Telegram channel.
Vital infrastructure
Ukrainian authorities consider that Russian strikes are part of an “attrition war” aimed at weakening the country militarily and economically.
The railroads play a key role in the country’s transportation, responsible for two-thirds of total cargo shipments and one-third of passenger movements.
Over 8 million passengers used the trains in the three summer months alone, as they connect all the key cities and aid evacuations from frontline regions. Western officials and displaced Ukrainians also use the trains to arrive in the country from abroad, with all flights canceled since the start of the invasion almost four years ago.
Trains carry Ukrainian grain to its Black Sea ports (over 23 million tonnes so far in 2025), helping keep logistic costs low and maximize export proceeds. They also transport military equipment to the east from the western border with the European Union and the military bases located there.
The strikes also deepen the economic troubles of Ukrzaliznytsia, the country’s railway operator.
According to Vice Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba, the biggest employer in the country has suffered over 800 strikes in 2025 alone, resulting in over 1 billion dollars in losses.
Adapting to the threat
Apart from targeting key hubs across the country with missiles and drones, Russia uses increasingly accurate drones to strike trains in the border and frontline regions, in an apparent attempt to isolate them from the rest of Ukraine.
As of November, the last legs of some routes have been canceled or replaced with buses, with trains now stopping short of arrivals in the Donetsk region.
Train schedules need to become less predictable to disrupt Russian attacks, and protective structures should be erected to shield locomotives, Bezkhrestnov argued.
The company’s ability to function in such circumstances has become a matter of pride for many Ukrainians, who say they continue to use the railways, often the cheapest and most comfortable option, for travel, as delays are kept to a minimum.
According to Skurska, who travels between Fastiv and Kyiv several times a week, alternatives to railroads appear quickly in the worst case. Despite the Russian strikes, she remains stoic.
“The main thing is to remember that together we are strong,” she underlined to EFE. EFE
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