After leaving Kherson, Russian occupiers can launch attack from Belarus on Chernihiv and Sumy regions - General Staff

Oleksii Hromov, deputy chief of the Main Operational Department of the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, said this at a briefing on November 17.

According to him, the occupiers have long sought to take over the entire Donetsk region.

"After retreating from the right-bank part of the Kherson region, the enemy is rebuilding its troops and transferring combat-ready units to other directions. For the enemy, it is essential to establish control over the Donetsk region, Russia is trying to realize its "dreams" even now, Hromov said.

At the same time, he noted that there is still a possibility of an aggravation of the situation in the Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia directions. Earlier, the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, stated that the occupiers seek to gain control over the entire Zaporizhzhia region.

Also, Hromov emphasized, one should not reject the risk of Russian troops attacking the Sumy and Chernihiv regions.

"If we take into account the ambitious plans of the enemy, they may also try to start an offensive from Belarus on the territory of the Chernihiv and Sumy regions. But this is all in their plans, and it was all already in our history, and we fought back with dignity. At the moment the enemy is really moving its troops in some directions, but we are also taking measures," Hromov concluded.