CNN
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According to Ukrainian officials and analysts, Russian forces continued to advance in the Smie region of northern Ukraine, bringing the regional capital within drone and artillery range.
Ivan Shevtsov, a spokesman for the region’s Ukrainian military, said in addition to trying to advance towards Smie city, Russian forces are constantly bombarding the area, with civilian evacuation in progress.
“At this point, the territory already occupied by the enemy is about 15km along the front line and about 6-7km deep,” Shevtsov said. He added that the Russians are about to advance towards the town of Yunakivka within a few kilometres of their current position.
The Smie junta said Russian forces had fired nearly 150 artillery attacks on 47 villages in the region from 24 hours to Tuesday morning.
The Russian Ministry of Defense on Tuesday claimed that the troops captured Andrivka’s village as they widened the front line, according to the official news agency of Tas.
Shevtsov said further advances could allow the Russians to launch a more coordinated attack on Sumy City. The current population is unknown, but before the war began, it was home to around 5 million people.
The Deep State, an unofficial Ukrainian group that monitors the frontline, reported that Russian forces had occupied another settlement in northern Smie and placed about 20 kilometres from the city of Smie.
“The situation north of the Smee region continues to deteriorate due to constant pressure from the enemy and numerous infantry.”
“The threat of enemy advancement is to reach a distance of 20-25km. This allows FPV drones to fly to the city of Smee.”
It added that the Ukrainian troops were unable to fight the use of Russian fiber optic drones.
“Another problem is that there’s a lack of personnel to hold the enemy in check, which is very lacking,” Deep State said.
Russians have been reinforcing units in the region for recent weeks as President Vladimir Putin visited the adjacent Russian Kursk region in mid-May and ordered the creation of a buffer zone within Smie (ISW).
Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky warned last month that Russia had gathered more than 50,000 troops near the Smie region. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces extend to multiple points on the front line, from the northern border to the Black Sea.
ISW said Monday that Russian troops have recently stepped up ground attacks and have brought in several experienced brigades, including air forces.
Ukrainian Army spokesman Shebstov said the Russian army “is aiming to not only create it in a so-called buffer zone of 20-30 km deep, but also fully capture the Smie region.”
Smee City was targeted by a rocket attack on Tuesday, according to Ukraine’s emergency services. Zelensky described it as “a savage strike… direct targeting the city and its ordinary streets with rocket artillery.”
On Monday, Zelensky described Northern Sammy as one of the “hottest” parts of the forefront.
Capturing the capital of the Smie region is probably beyond the Russians. The topography is thick and covered in forests. However, through their attacks, the Russians can prevent the Ukrainians from relocating their units to Donetsk and elsewhere on the frontline.
“The Russian military has not seized Ukrainian cities with a prewar population of more than 100,000 since July 2022,” ISW said Monday.
