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The Guardian
a day ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy says troops contesting Russian advance in Sumy
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukrainian forces are pushing back against Russian forces in the border Sumy region where they have established a foothold in recent weeks. 'Our units in Sumy region are gradually pushing back the occupiers,' said Ukraine's president in his nightly video address. 'I thank you! Thanks to every soldier, sergeant and officer for this result.' The Ukrainian president provided no further details and offered no proof of Ukrainian advances in the area, and the claim contradicts prevailing assessments of continued Russian gains in Sumy. Russia has seized over 190 sq km (73 sq miles) of the Sumy region in less than a month, according to pro-Ukrainian open-source maps. They have captured more ground in the past days, advancing to around 20km from the city of Sumy's northern suburbs and rendering it vulnerable to long-range artillery and drones. The number of displaced people arriving in Sumy city is increasing, said Kateryna Arisoi, head of Pluriton, an aid organisation running shelters. 'So far evacuation has been ordered in more than 200 settlements,' she said. Last week, a Russian rocket attack on Sumy city killed three people and injured 28, including three children, while also damaging several buildings. Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said there had been a concentration of Russian men and equipment in Sumy region because of months of military operations across the border in Kursk region. He advised caution to establish details of the situation on the ground. 'I think [Ukraine's] military has the situation under control and I think we shall see a different picture in the coming days.' Ukrainian police said two people were killed and six were injured in the past 24 hours in the eastern Donetsk region, the focus of the Russian offensive. One person was killed and 14 others were also injured in the southern Kherson region, which is partly occupied by Russian forces, police said. The authorities in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, said 18 people including four children were injured by Russian drone attacks over Wednesday night. Boris Pistorius on a surprise visit to Kyiv said Germany was not planning to deliver Taurus long-range missiles to Ukraine that could allow it to strike deep into Russian territory. Instead, the German defence minister announced €1.9bn in additional military aid. Pistorius underscored that Germany would help Ukraine build its own long-range missile systems and help it finance purchases of homemade material. 'The first systems should be available in the coming months,' Russian has exceeded a million troops killed or wounded in its Ukraine war, according to the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces and western intelligence estimates. The UK defence ministry also announced the figure on Thursday. The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington has called it 'a stunning and grisly milestone'. Zelenskyy said he hoped to press Donald Trump at the G7 summit this weekend to step up sanctions against Russia. The US president said at the White House on Thursday that 'I'm very disappointed in Russia, but I'm disappointed in Ukraine also, because I think deals could have been made'. Two weeks ago, Trump indicated he would do something by now if it turned out Putin had been 'tapping him along', but the US president has so far failed to follow through. The US Republican senator Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, is pushing what he calls a bipartisan 'bone-breaking' bill to introduce a 500% tariff on countries buying Russian oil and gas – mostly targeting China and India.
Reuters
a day ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Ukrainian refugees in Sumy fear Russian advance, shelling
SUMY, Ukraine, June 12 (Reuters) - Margaryta Husakova, her broken arm secured in a metal orthopedic fixation device, smoked nervously as she sat on the staircase of a refugee shelter in Sumy, a city in northern Ukraine, contemplating what the future holds. In May, Husakova, 37, a mother of eight, lost her mother, sister, and uncle in a Russian drone attack on a van near the town of Bilopillia, west of Sumy. Nine people died in total and Husakova was among the five wounded. "A man pulled me out of the bus, emergency services arrived, and I was sitting there on the grass," she said. Despite talk of peace, the war is creeping closer to Sumy, a regional capital of 250,000 people, located just 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the border with Russia. After the bus attack, Husakova and her family fled their native town Bilopillia, now a target of Russian artillery, and sought shelter at a refugee centre in Sumy. "What's next? We're sitting here, but if they offer us somewhere else, we'll go with the children," she said. Her father, Vyacheslav, expressed worry about the future. "I don't know what's next … the most important thing for me is to take the children away, because katsapy will come to Sumy too,' he said, using a pejorative term for Russians. Russia, which controls just under one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, has seized over 190 square kilometres (73 square miles) of the Sumy region in less than a month, according to pro-Ukrainian open-source maps. Russian troops have captured more ground in the past days, advancing to around 20 kilometres from Sumy's northern suburbs, bringing the city closer to being within the range of long-range artillery and drones. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address on Thursday, said Ukrainian forces were "gradually pushing back" Russian soldiers in the region, but offered no details. The number of displaced people arriving in Sumy is increasing, said Kateryna Arisoi, head of Pluriton, a non-governmental organization that operates the shelter for internally displaced people. 'We are seeing the frontline slowly moving toward Sumy,' she said. "So far evacuation has been ordered in more than 200 settlements." Last week, a Russian rocket attack on Sumy killed three people and injured 28, including three children, while also damaging several buildings. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their attacks, but thousands of civilians have died in the three-year-long conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukrainian refugees in Sumy fear Russian advance, shelling
SUMY (Reuters) -Margaryta Husakova, her broken arm secured in a metal orthopedic fixation device, smoked nervously as she sat on the staircase of a refugee shelter in Sumy, a city in northern Ukraine, contemplating what the future holds. In May, Husakova, 37, a mother of eight, lost her mother, sister, and uncle in a Russian drone attack on a van near the town of Bilopillia, west of Sumy. Nine people died in total and Husakova was among the five wounded. 'A man pulled me out of the bus, emergency services arrived, and I was sitting there on the grass,' she said. Despite talk of peace, the war is creeping closer to Sumy, a regional capital of 250,000 people, located just 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the border with Russia. After the bus attack, Husakova and her family fled their native town Bilopillia, now a target of Russian artillery, and sought shelter at a refugee center in Sumy. 'What's next? We're sitting here, but if they offer us somewhere else, we'll go with the children,' she said. Her father, Vyacheslav, expressed worry about the future. 'I don't know what's next … the most important thing for me is to take the children away, because katsapy will come to Sumy too,' he said, using a pejorative term for Russians. Russia, which controls just under one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, has seized over 190 square kilometers (73 square miles) of the Sumy region in less than a month, according to pro-Ukrainian open-source maps. Russian troops have captured more ground in the past days, advancing to around 20 kilometers from Sumy's northern suburbs, bringing the city closer to being within the range of long-range artillery and drones. The number of displaced people arriving in Sumy is increasing, said Kateryna Arisoi, head of Pluriton, a non-governmental organization that operates the shelter for internally displaced people. 'We are seeing the frontline slowly moving toward Sumy,' she said. "So far evacuation has been ordered in more than 200 settlements." Last week, a Russian rocket attack on Sumy killed three people and injured 28, including three children, while also damaging several buildings. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their attacks, but thousands of civilians have died in the three-year-long conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian.
The Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Ukrainian refugees in Sumy fear Russian advance, shelling
Margaryta Husakova, 37, mother of eight children, who fled the Ukrainian town of Bilopilia, sits with her children near a refugee centre, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova SUMY (Reuters) -Margaryta Husakova, her broken arm secured in a metal orthopedic fixation device, smoked nervously as she sat on the staircase of a refugee shelter in Sumy, a city in northern Ukraine, contemplating what the future holds. In May, Husakova, 37, a mother of eight, lost her mother, sister, and uncle in a Russian drone attack on a van near the town of Bilopillia, west of Sumy. Nine people died in total and Husakova was among the five wounded. 'A man pulled me out of the bus, emergency services arrived, and I was sitting there on the grass,' she said. Despite talk of peace, the war is creeping closer to Sumy, a regional capital of 250,000 people, located just 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the border with Russia. After the bus attack, Husakova and her family fled their native town Bilopillia, now a target of Russian artillery, and sought shelter at a refugee center in Sumy. 'What's next? We're sitting here, but if they offer us somewhere else, we'll go with the children,' she said. Her father, Vyacheslav, expressed worry about the future. 'I don't know what's next … the most important thing for me is to take the children away, because katsapy will come to Sumy too,' he said, using a pejorative term for Russians. Russia, which controls just under one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, has seized over 190 square kilometers (73 square miles) of the Sumy region in less than a month, according to pro-Ukrainian open-source maps. Russian troops have captured more ground in the past days, advancing to around 20 kilometers from Sumy's northern suburbs, bringing the city closer to being within the range of long-range artillery and drones. The number of displaced people arriving in Sumy is increasing, said Kateryna Arisoi, head of Pluriton, a non-governmental organization that operates the shelter for internally displaced people. 'We are seeing the frontline slowly moving toward Sumy,' she said. "So far evacuation has been ordered in more than 200 settlements." Last week, a Russian rocket attack on Sumy killed three people and injured 28, including three children, while also damaging several buildings. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their attacks, but thousands of civilians have died in the three-year-long conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian. (Reporting by Vitaly Hnidyi; Writing by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Nia Williams)
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Ukrainian refugees in Sumy fear Russian advance, shelling
Margaryta Husakova, 37, mother of eight children, who fled the Ukrainian town of Bilopilia, sits next to her children and other refugees outside a refugee centre, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova Margaryta Husakova, 37, mother of eight children, who fled the Ukrainian town of Bilopilia, sits with her children at a refugee centre, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY Margaryta Husakova, 37, mother of eight children, who fled the Ukrainian town of Bilopilia, sits with her children near a refugee centre, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova SUMY - Margaryta Husakova, her broken arm secured in a metal orthopedic fixation device, smoked nervously as she sat on the staircase of a refugee shelter in Sumy, a city in northern Ukraine, contemplating what the future holds. In May, Husakova, 37, a mother of eight, lost her mother, sister, and uncle in a Russian drone attack on a van near the town of Bilopillia, west of Sumy. Nine people died in total and Husakova was among the five wounded. 'A man pulled me out of the bus, emergency services arrived, and I was sitting there on the grass,' she said. Despite talk of peace, the war is creeping closer to Sumy, a regional capital of 250,000 people, located just 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the border with Russia. After the bus attack, Husakova and her family fled their native town Bilopillia, now a target of Russian artillery, and sought shelter at a refugee center in Sumy. 'What's next? We're sitting here, but if they offer us somewhere else, we'll go with the children,' she said. Her father, Vyacheslav, expressed worry about the future. 'I don't know what's next … the most important thing for me is to take the children away, because katsapy will come to Sumy too,' he said, using a pejorative term for Russians. Russia, which controls just under one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, has seized over 190 square kilometers (73 square miles) of the Sumy region in less than a month, according to pro-Ukrainian open-source maps. Russian troops have captured more ground in the past days, advancing to around 20 kilometers from Sumy's northern suburbs, bringing the city closer to being within the range of long-range artillery and drones. The number of displaced people arriving in Sumy is increasing, said Kateryna Arisoi, head of Pluriton, a non-governmental organization that operates the shelter for internally displaced people. 'We are seeing the frontline slowly moving toward Sumy,' she said. "So far evacuation has been ordered in more than 200 settlements." Last week, a Russian rocket attack on Sumy killed three people and injured 28, including three children, while also damaging several buildings. Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in their attacks, but thousands of civilians have died in the three-year-long conflict, the vast majority of them Ukrainian. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
