Kremlin’s War Machine Slows, Ukraine Knocks Russian Rail Hubs Offline

Ukraine targeted the aggressor’s rails, not civilians: Kuteinikovo jammed, 26 trains delayed, and Moscow’s war pipeline clogged.

We regularly monitor developments in Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine. One doesn't need to be a genius to know that the railway plays a key role in transporting supplies, evacuating civilians, and managing logistics in affected areas.

At the beginning of September, further reports arrived. Ukrainian drones struck again, and this time they managed to cripple a key artery in Russia. Chaos reigned at Kuteynikovo railway station in the Rostov region. Instead of the regular whistles of locomotives, there was an explosion, and the idyll ended at once. And the result? 26 trains were held, and passengers waited up to four hours for their connections.

According to local authorities, who vigorously tried to calm an agitated public, the night attack damaged the station’s electrical infrastructure. And to make matters worse, unexploded ordnance landed on the roof of one of the buildings, necessitating a rapid evacuation. "It is a miracle that no one was injured," said acting governor Yuriy Slyusar. The Kyiv Independent, however, did not confirm the claims. Meanwhile, Russian claims of concern for civilians ring hollow: on Sept. 9, a Russian air strike on the village of Yarova killed 24 pensioners and wounded 19 others waiting in line, according to Ukrainian officials and international reporting.

The Railway as a Target in Russia’s Aggression Against Ukraine

Why the railway? Ukraine has long targeted Russian military objectives, fuel depots, and logistics networks. And the railway, it seems, is a tempting prize. It is a targeted operation against infrastructure that Russia, under Putin’s leadership, uses for war purposes. They say they want to weaken Russia’s war effort. "This systematic destruction of logistics hubs is part of a ‘death by a thousand cuts’ strategy," Kevliuk said. "Small but constant attacks together cause significant disruption to Russian supply lines." 

By way of reminder, this incident is not isolated—as we have reported several times—on the contrary, it follows a series of similar operations aimed at railway infrastructure in the south of the country. In recent months, strikes have been reported on Russian ammunition depots, fuel facilities, as well as locomotives and other trains in the occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia. The use of drones and long-range missiles allows the Ukrainian army to carry out operations deep into Russian territory. In July, for example, HUR (the Defence Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine) announced the successful destruction of a Russian locomotive in the Zaporizhzhia area. The objective is straightforward. Attacks on railway transport are intended systematically to paralyse the movement of fuel and ammunition, thereby slowing the tempo of Russian operations.

Putin and the Railways Under Fire: How Drones Are Changing Russia’s Strategy

Returning to the incident at hand. Russian Railways initially acted as if nothing was happening, and shortly thereafter reported that trains were running again, albeit with delays. The longest delay reached 4 hours and 15 minutes. In the meantime, Russia boasted that it had shot down an incredible 105 Ukrainian drones, of which 25 allegedly flew over the Rostov region. Ukraine, however, remains silent. Is it simply laughing and waiting for the next opportunity?

While Putin’s Russia boasts about handling Ukrainian drones, Ukraine, in the meantime, faced a massive night attack. Russian forces launched 526 missiles and drones. Although Ukrainian air defence managed to destroy 451 of them, the attack still left devastation. In the west of the country, buildings were destroyed, and on the railway in Kirovohrad region four workers were injured. The war is not fought on one side alone, and every action provokes a reaction. Not to mention that even on Sunday, Putin’s Russia carried out the largest Russian drone attack since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, as confirmed by Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat to the Associated Press.

Ukrainian Drones Slow Russian Fuel Movements

Every Ukrainian drone hitting the railway can significantly slow Russian movements of fuel, ammunition and reinforcements, thereby effectively weakening the enemy’s combat capacity. Systematic attacks on railway nodes and depots demonstrate a deliberate strategy of "fragmenting blows"—every delayed locomotive or paralysed line means, in the context of war, an hourly or daily loss that accumulates and affects operations hundreds of kilometres away, and with all likeness saving dozens, hundreds, and thousands of Ukrainian lives.