Zelenskyy says Ukraine halts Russian troop advance in Sumy region
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that Ukrainian forces had recaptured Andriivka village in northeastern Sumy region as part of a drive to expel Russian forces from the area.
Zelenskyy has in the past week focused on what he describes as a drive to push out Russian forces from the Sumy region, with border areas gripped by heavy fighting. He says Russia has amassed 53,000 troops in the area.
"Based on recent developments, our special thanks go to the soldiers of the 225th Separate Assault Regiment -- for offensive operations in the Sumy region and the liberation, in particular, of Andriivka," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.
Zelenskyy also noted "successful actions" near Pokrovsk, for months a focus of Russian attacks in their slow advance on the eastern front, and "strong results" near Kupiansk, an area in northeastern Ukraine that has come under heavy Russian pressure.
In remarks released for publication earlier on Saturday, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces had stopped Russian troops advancing in Sumy region and were battling to regain control along the border.
"We are levelling the position. The fighting there is along the border. You should understand that the enemy has been stopped there. And the maximum depth at which the fighting takes place is 7 km (4 miles) from the border," Zelenskyy said.
Reuters could not verify the battlefield reports.
Russia's troops have been focusing their assaults in the eastern Donetsk region, with Pokrovsk a particular target.
But since the start of the month, they have intensified their attacks in the northeast, announcing plans to create a so-called 'buffer zone' in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions.
Russia's Defense Ministry said on Saturday that its forces had seized the village of Zelenyi Kut, southwest of Pokrovsk.
The Russian war in Ukraine is in its fourth year, but it has intensified in recent weeks.
Ukraine conducted an audacious drone attack this month that took out multiple aircraft inside Russia and also hit the bridge connecting Russia to the annexed Crimean peninsula using underwater explosives.
Moscow ramped up its air assaults after the attack.
MAINTAINING DEFENSIVE LINES
Zelenskyy said Ukrainian troops had maintained defensive lines along more than 1,000 km of the frontline. He also dismissed Moscow's claims that Russian troops had crossed into the central Ukrainian region of Dnipropetrovsk.
Zelenskyy said that Russia was sending small assault groups "to get one foot on the administrative border" and make a picture or a video, but these attacks were repelled.
The popular Ukrainian military blog DeepState, which relies on open-source data, said Ukrainian troops had repelled a Russian attack in the area, but also reported Russian advances in other areas, including Pokrovsk.
Dnipropetrovsk borders three regions that are partially occupied by Russia – Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Russia now controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.
Zelenskyy acknowledged that Ukraine was unable to regain all of its territory by military force and reiterated his pleas for stronger sanctions to force Moscow into talks to end the war.
Two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul produced few results that could lead to a ceasefire and a broader peace deal. The two sides agreed only to exchange prisoners of war.
Several swaps have already been conducted this month, and Zelenskyy said he expected them to continue until June 20 or 21.
In separate remarks made on communications platform Telegram on Saturday, he said that a new group of Ukrainian prisoners of war had come home as part of another swap with Russia.
"We continue to take our people out of Russian captivity. This is the fourth exchange in a week," Zelenskyy wrote.
Ukrainian officials responsible for exchanging prisoners said the vast majority of the soldiers released in the exchange had been held captive since 2022 with many captured during the more than 80-day siege of the Sea of Azov port of Mariupol.
The officials said Kyiv had, meanwhile, received the bodies of 1,200 of its soldiers killed in the war with Russia. The bodies were handed over to Ukraine on Friday.
Russian state media, citing sources, reported that Moscow had not received any of its war dead back from Kyiv.
© Thomson Reuters 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
Ukraine facing fierce fighting around eastern city of Pokrovsk, Zelenskiy says
FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a press briefing following phone calls with U.S. President Donald Trump, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 19, 2025. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo By Ron Popeski and Oleksandr Kozhukha President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that Ukrainian forces were facing fierce fighting around the city of Pokrovsk in the east, a logistics hub near which Russia has been announcing the capture of villages on an almost daily basis. Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address, said Ukraine's top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, told a meeting of senior officials that the situation around Pokrovsk was the current focal point of its attention in the war, which began when Russia invaded in February 2022. "All operational directions were covered, with particular focus on Pokrovsk. It receives the most attention," Zelenskiy said. Ukrainian forces, he said, were also "continuing to act" in border areas in the northern Sumy region, where Russian troops have gained a foothold in recent weeks. Syrskyi, in a separate report on the Telegram messaging app, described Pokrovsk and five other sectors as among the most difficult theatres along the 1,000-km (620-mile) front. "The Russian Federation is paying the maximum price for attempting a 'summer offensive,'" Syrskyi wrote. Russian forces have for months been trying to close in on Pokrovsk, a road and rail hub whose pre-war population of about 60,000 has been all but evacuated. Syrskyi in May reported that Kyiv's troops had stabilised the situation around the town, also the site of the only colliery in Ukraine producing coking coal for the country's steel industry. Russia's Defence Ministry on Thursday announced the capture of two villages on either side of Pokrovsk -- Zvirove to the west and Novoekonomichne to the east. A third village near the city -- Novotoretske -- was declared by Moscow to be "liberated" earlier in the week. Ukrainian officials have made no acknowledgement that the villages have changed hands. The General Staff of Ukraine's military said in an evening report that two of them -- Zvirove and Novoekonomichne - were in areas where Russian troops were trying to penetrate Ukrainian defences. In Sumy region, where Russian troops are trying to establish what Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin calls a "buffer zone", the popular Ukrainian military blog DeepState said Kyiv's forces had retaken a previously lost village. DeepState, which relies on open source reports to track the presence of Russian forces, said Ukrainian troops had restored control over the village of Kindrativka. There was no official comment from either side. © (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025.
Nikkei Asia
3 hours ago
- Nikkei Asia
Japan firms may rethink US study abroad over Trump policy: survey
The Trump administration's policies are putting pressure on Harvard and other top U.S. universities. © Reuters YOHEI KAWAI TOKYO -- Nearly a third of major Japanese companies say they may consider changes to policies for sending employees to study in the U.S., a Nikkei survey shows, as universities come under fire from Washington. Top U.S. universities face growing pressure from the Trump administration, which has tried to stop Harvard University from accepting international students, leaving Japanese companies looking for alternatives.
The Diplomat
3 hours ago
- The Diplomat
Japan's Neighbors Anxiously Assess the Results of the Upper House Election
Russia, China, and South Korea are trying to predict what the rise of Japan's far right will mean for their interests. For the first time since 1955, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has lost control over both houses of parliament, known as the National Diet. In the July 20 election for the House of Councillors, the upper house, the LDP and its coalition partner won just 47 seats, three short of the number needed to maintain a majority. This followed a defeat in the lower house, the House of Representatives, in October 2024, where the LDP also lost its majority. Most notably, in the July upper house election, the far-right, anti-immigrant Sanseito won 14 seats, increasing their total seats from one to 15. The centrist Democratic Party for the People also dramatically expanded its presence; the party now holds 22 seats in the House of Councillors, more than double its previous tally. Both are populist parties that successfully capitalized on domestic dissatisfaction with the cost of living. Despite the major loss for his party, Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru vowed to stay in his position – at least for the time being. But regardless of his own political fortunes, Japan's immediate neighbors largely expect Tokyo's foreign policy to stay the course in the short term. Surprisingly, Russia emerged as an issue in the election, with some Japanese news outlets accusing Moscow of interfering in the election. Sanseito came under fire after Saya, a candidate for a Tokyo constituency, was interviewed by Sputnik, a Russian state media outlet the Kremlin uses to propagate disinformation overseas. Sanseito claimed Saya (a political newcomer who uses only one name) spoke without proper authorization, though previously the party's leader, Kamiya Sohei, had suggested himself that sanctions against Russia should be relaxed. During the 2025 campaign, the Ishiba administration blamed foreign bots on social media for spreading disinformation about the foreign population in Japan, amplifying the message of far-right parties such as Sanseito. Although Russian media saw little sign of immediate change in Japan-U.S. relations or Japan's partnership with NATO after the election, some commentators expressed hope for a 'diversification' in Japanese foreign policy. The state-owned RIA Novosti celebrated the election of Suzuki Muneo, an independent candidate with strong ties to Russia. A former LDP politician, Suzuki was a figure in Japan's Russia policy until his resignation and conviction on corruption charges, after which he played the role of unofficial adviser on Russia, including to the late Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. Commentators in China saw the LDP loss ushering in a period of turbulence and uncertainty. China's relations with Japan have stabilized in recent months, though some of the anti-immigrant rhetoric in the upper house election took aim at Chinese citizens buying up property in Tokyo. Chinese nationals are the largest group of immigrants – 870,000 were living in Japan as of late 2024, with their numbers expected to grow to 1 million by 2025, but still making up less than 1 percent of the population. Some Chinese commentators argued that the rise of the right wing would bode ill for China. They predicted Japan's government will likely implement more provocative policies such as ramping up naval patrols in disputed waters, increasing defense cooperation with Taiwan, and restricting Chinese imports – ostensibly for supply chain security. In China, Japan scholar Meng Xiaoxu noted that Ishiba failed to attend the 2025 NATO summit held just prior to the election, but he predicted that the Japanese government's ties to NATO would further strengthen in the future and noted that the Japan-U.S. alliance remained a top priority. For South Korea's new government, the emphasis has been on continuity. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun spoke by phone with Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi and agreed to continue to prioritize the stable development of bilateral relations, especially their cooperation on North Korea and trilateral diplomacy with the United States. According to Cho, 'Korea-Japan cooperation is the centerpiece of our government's practical diplomacy along with the Korea-U.S. alliance.' North Korea has not publicly issued a statement regarding Japan's recent election. The latest press statements from North Korea's authoritative news outlet, Korean Central News Agency, condemned Japan's next-generation fighters and its recently released Defense White Paper 2025. However, the KCNA also encouraged ethnic Koreans in Japan to 'devote themselves to carrying out their patriotic duties' and ensure the continued development of ethnic Koreans in Japan. The ethnic Koreans who support North Korea through the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan – referred to as Chongryon – are connected to the financial and international reach of North Korea. North Korea's close ties to the Chongryon makes it possible, though unlikely, that Pyongyang will publicly condemn Sanseito's anti-immigrant rhetoric. South Korea also has remained relatively quiet about the success of Sanseito. South Korean media has focused on the LDP's election loss and the rise of Sanseito, rather than the implications for Zainichi Koreans – ethnic Koreans residing in Japan. Koreans in Japan who identify with South Korea belong to the Korean Residents Union in Japan, known as the Mindan. Unlike North Korea, which uses the Chongryon for global outreach, South Korea is not as reliant on the Mindan. Because of that, it is unlikely that the Lee Jae-myung administration will comment on Japan's domestic affairs. Given that South Korea's foreign minister just described the Seoul-Tokyo relationship as a 'key axis' of the administration's pragmatic diplomacy strategy, there is less of a chance that South Korea will involve itself in Sanseito's anti-immigration controversies. Instead, local Japanese and ethnic Korean groups have highlighted the impacts on the Zainichi community. When Kamiya, Sanseito's leader, used a slur against ethnic Koreans in a campaign speech, the Korea NGO Center, an Osaka-based nonprofit, protested his language, demanding that he apologize. In a letter, the organization stated that Sanseito has capitalized on social anxiety to push for ethnic discrimination and the exclusion of foreigners. Additionally, in a post-election interview, Mindan President Kim Yi-joong stated he 'never imagined' that a political party like Sanseito would emerge and surpass the minimum 11 seats required in the upper chamber to submit bills. Kim said he worried about potential bills that would revoke the right to vote for first-generation naturalized Japanese citizens – those who were born as foreigners but acquired citizenship later in life, the status of many Zainichi Koreans. As Sanseito members propose legislation, it will be important to watch the groups and actors who become increasingly involved. Now that Ishiba has reached a tariff deal with the Trump administration in the United States, it remains to be seen if or when the Japanese prime minister will resign from office and who might replace him. Although Japan's neighbors emphasize the continuity they expect to see in Japanese foreign policy, they are watching the unfolding political drama in Japan with a mixture of hope and concern.
