Ukraine's Ministry of Restoration, Infrastructure and Transport has initiated negotiations with several neighboring countries to relocate border crossing points onto foreign territory. This was announced by First Deputy Minister Serhiy Derkach, whose words are cited by RBC-Ukraine via Interfax-Ukraine. According to him, the initiative is driven by systematic shelling of border checkpoints by Russian military forces, which disables key logistics hubs and poses a threat to the lives of civilians.
Alternative Logistics Strategy
Derkach explained that establishing joint border crossing points on the territory of neighboring states would ensure the uninterrupted operation of supply chains and accelerate the movement of goods through faster border and customs procedures. "We are now working with other countries, with our neighbors, so that we can have the option — and we are talking about an alternative — to relocate border crossing points to the territory of another country," the First Deputy Minister emphasized. He added that Kyiv is working out such mechanisms with every state bordering Ukraine.
Poland and Moldova as Pilot Directions
As a practical example, Derkach cited Poland, where several joint border crossing points are already operational, as well as Moldova. According to the ministry, negotiations on expanding the format of joint checkpoints are at the most advanced stage with these countries. In particular, Poland has already taken steps to evacuate two border crossing points — Dorohusk and Zosin — following Russian missile strikes on Ukraine near the border, which confirms the reality of the threat and the justification for Kyiv's initiative.
Chronicle of Attacks on Border Facilities
Over the past weeks, a series of incidents has been recorded, demonstrating the targeted nature of strikes on border infrastructure. On the night of September 9, Russian attack drones struck the international border crossing point of Starokozache on the border with Moldova, resulting in deaths and injuries. In the same period, the Orlovka checkpoint on the border with Romania came under attack and temporarily ceased operations. On the morning of September 13, Russian forces struck a gas station and a passenger train at Yagodyn station in Volyn Oblast — the attack occurred when the train was approximately two kilometers from the border with Poland. According to the Ministry of Infrastructure's assessment, the totality of these incidents makes it impossible to guarantee the operation of traditional checkpoints on Ukrainian territory.
Contradictory Data
No direct contradictions in key figures and dates were found in the provided fact-checking sources. However, it should be noted that some of the sources found (inform.kz materials on the closure of border crossing points on the Kazakhstan-China border) are unrelated to the topic and do not confirm any of the article's facts. The only relevant external source, apart from the initial RBC-Ukraine report, is a UNIAN article on the difficult movement to border crossing points in Odesa Oblast and Border Guard Service recommendations on choosing alternative routes, which indirectly confirms the overall picture of overload and instability in border logistics. The exact number of joint checkpoints already operating in Poland is not specified in Derkach's statement — he limits himself to the wording "several."
Significance for the Economy and Transit
Relocating border crossing points beyond Ukrainian territory, if the negotiations are successful, would become a precedent-setting decision in postwar European logistics. For Ukraine, this means reduced risks for civilian and military facilities in the border region; for neighbors, it means an additional load on border infrastructure, but also the opportunity to speed up customs clearance. Given the ongoing shelling and the inability to guarantee the safety of traditional checkpoints, the alternative format, by design of the Ministry of Infrastructure, is intended to become not a temporary measure but a sustainable element of cross-border trade.
