Poland plans to give railway guards powers to neutralise drones threatening rail infrastructure, including in some cases with firearms, under draft legislation published by the government on Friday.
The draft amendment to the Railway Transport Act, prepared by the Infrastructure Ministry, would expand the powers of the Railway Security Guard (SOK) as Warsaw steps up security following sabotage on its rail network and concerns over alleged Russian hybrid operations targeting critical infrastructure.
Under the proposal, SOK officers would be allowed to use equipment capable of destroying or disabling drones. They could also use firearms in a wider range of situations, including against drones in specific cases set out in aviation law.
The draft would also allow guards to record their interventions and pursue suspects across private land.
The government said the changes were intended to adapt the guards’ powers to “contemporary threats” and strengthen the protection of the railway network, which is classed as critical infrastructure.
The proposal follows sabotage on the Warsaw-Lublin line last November. Explosives damaged a section of track near the village of Mika, while near Puławy, overhead infrastructure was damaged and a metal clamp was placed on the track in what authorities said appeared to be an attempt to derail a train.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said two Ukrainian nationals working with Russian intelligence were behind the attacks, describing them as among the most serious acts of sabotage in Poland since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Concerns have also grown over drone activity around sensitive sites. A parliamentary inquiry in July cited drone flights near railway facilities and raised questions about the powers available to police and other services to deal with unmanned aircraft near strategically important infrastructure.
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