Russia aims to move artillery, drones within range of Sumy, warns army officer

He said this during a broadcast on Espreso.

"Can the Russians deploy a contingent on the territory of Belarus? Of course they can. And where did the 67,000 troops of the Russian army that were in the Kursk direction go? We need to watch where they reappear. In addition, North Korea has officially entered the war against Ukraine. 

As for Belarus, I believe that if something flies or crawls in from there, legitimate targets for Ukraine could be the Mozyr Oil Refinery, and they also have several chemical plants that produce fertilizers and generate most of the foreign currency income for Lukashenko. In my opinion, we must be ready for threats from that direction. And they must understand that we will strike back," Lapin emphasized.

According to him, the occupying Russian forces are currently fighting over islands to attempt a crossing of the Dnipro River in the south — and are quietly dying there. "Everything is fine — Ukraine’s Defense Forces are holding the line."

"The greater risks are in the Sumy region, as the Russians are trying to seize our territory and get as close as possible to the city of Sumy, so that their artillery and long-range drones can reach it. And that is a very serious problem. We need to understand that a static front is a significant issue for us. When we switched to static defense in the Kursk area, we effectively buried a large portion of our Air Assault Forces and foreign equipment — this is no longer a secret. What interests me is: what is the current strategic plan — to not let the Russians into Sumy? These are all parts of the same chain," the Ukrainian Armed Forces major noted.

Lapin added that there are 13 roads from the Belarusian direction, so everything should have already been mined and fortified over the past four years. However, we need to be realistic, as everyone knows the number of Ukrainian defenders stationed on the Belarusian front compared to those in Donetsk.

• On April 28, Kordon.Media journalist Aliona Yatsyna said on Espreso that the enemy had managed to seize four villages in the Sumy region over the past two months, and the distance from the frontline to the center of Sumy is 25 kilometers.

• On April 29, military expert Serhiy Hrabskyi stated on Espreso that the number of Russian forces in certain parts of the Sumy region is not enough to break through to the city. Combat in the region remains low-intensity and is characterized by isolated tactical maneuvers.