No threat of encirclement or occupation of Sumy, Ukraine's expert group says

He said this on Espreso TV.

"If we are talking about the Sumy region, there are no fortifications on the border with Russia either. It is almost impossible to build fortifications a few kilometers from the border. At the moment, the Russians have concentrated a group of troops totaling more than 10,000 in the Kursk region near the border with Sumy. In the Belgorod region, from which they continue their offensive on Lyptsi and Vovchansk, more than 40,000 Russian personnel are concentrated," said Kovalenko.

The expert emphasized that today there are no threats to the encirclement of Sumy.

"Currently, a grouping of more than 40,000 troops is involved in the Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region, which is four times more than they have concentrated in the Kursk region. From this, we can conclude that the Russians may launch an offensive in the Sumy region, but only in the border area. These could be sabotage and reconnaissance operations in a very similar scenario to the fighting in the Kharkiv region. There is no threat of occupation of Sumy and the Sumy region. There is no threat of Sumy being surrounded either," he added.

• On May 13, the head of Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate, Kyrylo Budanov, said he expects a new Russian offensive in the Sumy region.
• On May 21, the spokesperson for Ukraine's State Border Guard, Andriy Demchenko, said that a Russian offensive in the Sumy region cannot be ruled out, which could happen “at any time.”