Officials in Ukraine’s Sumy region near the Russian border have mandated the evacuation of 11 villages due to ongoing bombardments, fueled by concerns of an impending Russian offensive.
“This decision is made in light of the persistent threat to civilian lives posed by the bombardments targeting border communities,” stated Sumy’s administration.
Russia’s defense ministry announced that its forces have captured another village in Sumy, Vodolagy, also referred to as Vodolahy in Ukrainian.
In recent weeks, Russia has claimed to have seized several villages in the northeastern area, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated this week that Moscow has amassed over 50,000 troops in the vicinity, signaling a potential escalation.
Zelensky noted that the build-up of Russian forces commenced after confrontations between Moscow’s troops and Ukrainian soldiers who had crossed into Russian territory in the Kursk region last year.
Russia has recently regained control of nearly all of Kursk.
As of now, Russia—having initiated its full-scale invasion in February 2022—occupies approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory. The protracted conflict has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians on both sides.
The United States has been at the forefront of diplomatic initiatives aimed at achieving a ceasefire, yet both Kyiv and Moscow accuse one another of resisting peace efforts.
The Kremlin has suggested resuming negotiations in Istanbul on Monday following a round of talks on May 16 that primarily resulted in a significant prisoner-of-war exchange.
Kyiv has yet to confirm its participation in the Istanbul discussions, insisting that Moscow must retract its stance against an immediate ceasefire.
