Ukraine plans to shift border crossings to allied neighbours to dodge Russian drone strikes

Ukraine is coordinating with allied neighbouring governments to relocate selected border crossing sites onto their territory, a measure designed to protect them from repeated Russian drone attacks. Serghii Derkaci, Ukraine's vice-minister of infrastructure, outlined a plan to establish joint control points with countries such as Poland, the Republic of Moldova and Romania. The proposal follows recent drone strikes that hit Ukrainian crossings, including a massive attack near the Polish border that damaged a fuel station, as well as incidents targeting crossings with Moldova and Romania.

These attacks have compelled the closure of customs and control posts, hampering the flow of trucks, cars and buses already strained by disrupted air routes and blocked ports. Ukraine already runs joint border facilities with Poland to keep traffic moving and now seeks to replicate that arrangement elsewhere. If carried out, the shift could lower the risk of further drone hits, though it may increase the exposure of the host nations to retaliation, as Russian drones have also entered the airspace of Poland, Romania and Moldova.