Camilla Jessen
Moscow’s growing military presence near Ukraine’s northern border is tying down forces, according to Ukrainian officials.
Russian forces are maintaining a steady military presence along the Ukrainian border with Chernihiv region, a move Ukrainian officials say is designed to stretch their defenses and prevent troops from being shifted to more active frontlines.
According to Vadym Mysnyk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s “Siversk” Operational Tactical Group, Russia’s ongoing activities along the northern border are creating constant pressure.
“They are keeping us tense and tying down our combat units so that we cannot redeploy them to hotter areas of the front,” Mysnyk said during a national telethon broadcast.
Pressure From the North
While no major breakthrough has occurred in the Chernihiv area, Mysnyk confirmed that the highest concentration of Russian shelling and troop activity is currently centered opposite Sumy region, especially along the border with Russia’s Kursk oblast.
Russian forces are reportedly trying to widen the active combat zone, potentially forcing Ukraine to divide its resources across a longer front.
However, Mysnyk said Ukrainian troops are holding the line and inflicting losses, successfully stopping enemy forces from advancing deeper into Ukrainian territory.
Russian Gains in the North and East
Meanwhile, on the same day, independent analysts from Ukraine’s DeepState project reported Russian troop movements and minor territorial gains in Sumy, Kharkiv, and Donetsk regions.
These included advances near the villages of Bilovody (Sumy) and Kamyanka (Kharkiv).
The updates follow earlier reports confirming that Russian forces have captured several villages in the northern Sumy region, part of what Moscow claims is an effort to establish a “buffer zone” along the border.
Ukrainian defense officials view the northern pressure as a deliberate tactic by Russia to pin down forces that could otherwise reinforce heavily contested sectors like Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia.
By keeping troops on high alert near Chernihiv and Sumy, Russia may be attempting to limit Ukraine’s operational flexibility and delay counterattacks elsewhere.