The creation of a buffer zone in Ukraine is repeatedly presented by Putin as a way to push Ukrainian forces and weapons further from Russian borders.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered to expand the buffer zone in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions of Ukraine next year, announced the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Army Valery Gerasimov. It was reported by the Reuters agency, writes TASR.
The statement by the head of the Russian army was preceded by statements by Russian officials that there will be retaliation for Ukraine’s alleged drone attack on Putin’s residence in the Novgorod region a few days ago. Kiev has denied carrying out such an attack, calling Moscow’s accusation an attempt to disrupt negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
A new military group
According to Russian agencies, Gerasimov visited the grouping of troops North, which was created at the beginning of 2024. These units operate in the northeast of Ukraine, where they are trying to create a buffer zone along the border and repel Ukrainian forces so that they cannot advance further.
The creation of a buffer zone in Ukraine is repeatedly presented by Putin as a way to push Ukrainian forces and weapons further from Russian borders. He justifies this with cross-border shelling and Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia’s border areas.
Ukraine criticizes the plans
Ukraine sees the buffer zone as a pretext used by Russia to justify its incursions deeper into Ukrainian territory.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, now controls almost a fifth of its smaller neighbor’s territory. Gerasimov said that Russian forces are advancing mainly in northeastern Ukraine.
