Is Putin’s army advancing on Sumy? Residents of the northern border and an expert analyze the threats

Recently, the occupiers have been dropping dozens of guided aerial bombs on Sumy every day.

In recent days, Putin’s army has been fiercely shelling the border communities of the Sumy region and the regional center itself. Just last night, according to official data from the Sumy Regional Military Administration, 91 explosions were recorded in the region. Evacuations continue in some communities, with residents who had stayed in their homes until now deciding to leave. For example, this situation is observed in the Yunakivka community, which is one of the hardest hit by Putin’s army.

As Olena Sima, the head of the Yunakivka community, told TSN.ua, the occupiers drop dozens of KABs on the community’s territory every day.

“The situation is very bad at the moment. They are bombarding us with GABs. Yesterday there were 30 KABs, today – 10. Infrastructure, private houses, and shops are damaged. The situation is very dire. We never thought this would happen,” Olena Sima told us.

She added that the issue of evacuating residents from the 5-kilometer zone from the border arose a year ago.

“We worked on this issue, warned people, and had individual conversations with each person. Many people left. As of today, about 70 people remain in the 5-kilometer zone. They had written refusals for evacuation, but now some are willing to leave. We are involving public organizations to carry out the evacuation. We are waiting for a government order regarding evacuation from the 10-kilometer zone,” the head of the community said.

Meanwhile, residents of the regional center told TSN.ua that despite the difficult situation, public transport, shops, and pharmacies are operating in the city, but several institutions suspend their work during air raid alerts and threats of shelling.

“Some institutions have moved their computers to shelters and are working from there. Other institutions consistently suspend work during air raid alerts. There is no evacuation or panic in the city; we are already used to the difficult situation, but transport and shops are operating more or less normally. Unlike the border area, which the enemy is shelling with ‘Grads,’ mortars, and KABs. There is no life there,” a resident of Sumy told us.

Are the shellings harbingers of new events?

According to Oleksandr Kovalenko, a military-political observer of the “Information Resistance” group, the intense shelling of the Sumy region should not be seen as a precursor to offensive actions in this direction.

“This should not be linked to the events happening in the Kursk region. For example, in 2022, the occupiers almost completely destroyed northern Saltivka in Kharkiv and continued to methodically strike. Today’s strikes on the Sumy region are general terrorist actions. This is all part of their overall plans,” the expert said.

Kovalenko also added that the occupiers are not currently concentrating enough forces and means in the Sumy direction for offensive actions.

“If the ‘sanitary zone’ expands in the Kursk region, it will become much harder for the Russians to shell Sumy region with barrel artillery,” the expert concluded.

Igor Serov

Tags: Russia russia ukraine war sumy sumy oblast Ukraine