Putin calls on army to ensure security zone with Ukraine’s boarders

(MENAFN) Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed military leaders to maintain efforts to secure a “security zone” along the nation’s border with Ukraine in the upcoming year.

During a briefing on the front-line situation in Ukraine, Putin received updates from military commanders on multiple operational fronts amid the nearly four-year conflict. Yevgeny Nikiforov, head of the “North” grouping of forces, stated that Russia’s “security zone” in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region extends over 16 kilometers (10 miles) in depth.

Nikiforov further asserted that Russian front-line units are positioned less than 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) from the administrative center of Sumy, noting that the zone spans approximately 60 kilometers (37.2 miles) in width.

“This is a very important task, as it ensures the security of Russia's border regions. This work must certainly continue in 2026,” Putin told Nikiforov, according to reports.

In the same briefing, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov reported that Russian forces had taken control of the settlements of Bohuslavka and Dibrova in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region and are making advances in Lyman, located in the eastern Donetsk region.

Gerasimov also indicated that troops are establishing a “security zone” in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region and advancing toward the city of Zaporizhzhia, having captured the village of Lukianivske along the way.

Earlier in May, Putin announced plans to create a “security buffer zone” along the Russia-Ukraine border after Russian forces claimed to have expelled Ukrainian troops from the Kursk border area, where Kyiv had conducted an incursion in August 2024.

Ukrainian authorities have not yet responded to Russia’s latest claims, and independent verification remains challenging due to the ongoing conflict, according to reports.

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