Three leaders of EU countries travel to Kiev by train.
When Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala wrote on Twitter that he and his Polish and Slovenian counterparts were on their way to Kiev, the initial reaction was – how?
The car journey from the Polish border to Kiev takes more than seven hours, and is also full of danger.
So it came as a surprise when it was revealed that the three would travel to the Ukrainian capital by train – a seven-hour journey – if it was to take place in peacetime.
Fiala said they had informed their EU counterparts last week and would travel as an official European Council delegation.
But an EU official said that the visit had no “official mandate” from the council and that Brussels had been informed that it would take place last night.
The EU acknowledged the need to show full support for Ukraine, but President Charles Michel had noted the “security risks” of travel.