Russia seizes villages in Ukraine's Sumy region to build 'buffer zone'

Russian forces have seized four villages in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region as part of efforts to establish a "buffer zone," the regional governor said Monday.

Oleh Hryhorov announced on Facebook that the villages, located near the Russian border, are now under Russian control. He noted that residents had been evacuated earlier.

"The enemy continues its attempts to advance in order to create a so-called 'buffer zone'," Hryhorov wrote.

Earlier in the day, Russia’s Defense Ministry also claimed control over two other villages in the area, separate from those listed by Ukrainian officials.

Ukraine's military has denied Russian claims of entering Yunakivka village in Sumy Oblast, calling them false, according to public broadcaster Suspilne. Russia's state-run TASS reported the alleged advance, but Ukrainian officials confirmed no Russian presence in the area. Monitoring group DeepState noted that several nearby villages including Novenke, Zhuravka, Veselivka, and Basivka remain in the "gray zone," with unclear or contested control.

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