The Russian army is trying to break through the Russia-Ukraine border in Sumy Oblast and cut Ukrainian forces off from its logistics routes, State Border Guard spokesperson Andrii Demchenko said on March 3 on national television.
Demchenko's statement comes after Russian forces attempted to cross the Russia-Ukraine border in Sumy Oblast near the village of Novenke but were repelled the previous week.
Northeastern Sumy Oblast borders Russia's Kursk Oblast, where Ukrainian forces launched an incursion last summer to draw away Moscow's troops from Donbas and disrupt Russian plans for an offensive from the north.
Demchenko said Russia is attempting to enter Ukrainian territory with assault groups in the direction of the village of Novenke that lies just across the border, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the regional center, Sumy.
The Ukrainian army is making every effort to prevent Russian units from gaining a foothold on Ukrainian territory, Demchenko said, adding that Russian troops mainly use "large numbers of equipment and personnel" in Kursk Oblast to achieve a breakthrough.
"These are not mass assaults. When the enemy tries to drive the Ukrainian Defense Forces out of Kursk Oblast, firstly, it puts pressure on our units within Kursk Oblast," Demchenko said.
"And then, it (Russia) is trying to expand the area of active combat activities, trying to enter the territory of Ukraine. However, all elements of the Defense Forces are operating in that area to prevent this. All available weapons are being used," he added.
Ukraine launched a surprise cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast in August 2024. After six months of fighting in the region, Russian troops have regained control of about 64% of the territory in the region, the Russian military claimed.
Russian casualties have reached nearly 40,000 in Kursk Oblast, including over 16,000 killed, Ukraine's General Staff reported on Feb. 6. Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said last November that the incursion thwarted Russia's plans to invade Sumy Oblast in an attempt to create a "buffer zone" in the region.
Francis Farrell
(Updated: )
