Russian small infantry group activity slows down in Sumy region — Ukraine’s Border Guard

State Border Guard Service spokesperson Andriy Demchenko reported this, Ukrinform says.

“The activity of Russian small infantry groups has significantly decreased, thanks to every Ukrainian soldier stationed there. Dozens of invaders have been killed or wounded while trying to cross our border and advance into our territory. At the start, the Russians disregarded their losses, but now we see a sharp decline in the use and deployment of such small assault groups at our border attempting to enter our land,” Demchenko said.

On the use of equipment and weaponry

He also noted that Russia's use of ATVs and motorcycles, which were previously actively employed to quickly advance deep into Ukrainian territory, has significantly decreased.

Demchenko added that on this section of the front, the occupying Russian forces are not using armored vehicles. The State Border Guard Service spokesperson suggested that Russian troops either lack sufficient armored equipment or are saving it for future operations.

On the Russian strikes

As the State Border Guard Service spokesperson emphasized, the Russian army continues shelling the territory of the Sumy region as well as neighboring Chernihiv and Kharkiv regions. They also actively use aviation in this direction, dropping guided aerial bombs and striking with unguided air-launched missiles.

On Russian sabotage and reconnaissance group activity

At the same time, Demchenko noted that despite the decrease in activity of sabotage and reconnaissance groups, Russian troops have not completely abandoned their use.

“Sabotage and reconnaissance groups were most active along the border in the Sumy region, as well as in Kharkiv. Their activity has significantly declined recently. However, the Russians have not completely stopped their sabotage operations. Individual sabotage and reconnaissance groups are still being detected when attempting to enter our territory. This applies to both the Sumy and Kharkiv regions. The threat from such actions also remains for Chernihiv, although no such attempts have been recorded recently along that section of the border,” Demchenko said.

He noted that the tasks of the sabotage and reconnaissance groups remain the same — laying mines and scouting the area to identify Ukrainian positions.

“And, in fact, these are also attempts by saboteurs to enter our territory and attack Ukrainian defenders’ positions themselves, including efforts to capture our soldiers,” Demchenko said.

According to him, along the border with Chernihiv, Russian forces hold certain units that maintain positions and fire on Ukrainian territory, but “no significant concentration or sufficient grouping has been recorded in this area at the moment.”

• At the end of June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia failed to execute its offensive plan in the Sumy region thanks to the actions of Ukrainian units, which fully accomplished their assigned combat missions.