Russian forces have continued their offensive operations in Ukraine this week, though much of the world’s attention remains focused on the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.
Despite the relative lack of global media coverage, Russian troops have either captured or are on the verge of capturing the town of Yunakovka—a heavily fortified and strategically important town in Ukraine’s Sumy region, located less than five miles (8 kilometers) from the Russian border.
Yunakovka served as the launch site for Ukraine’s surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region last August, during which Ukrainian forces seized swaths of territory before being pushed out in March amid a Russian counteroffensive.
Russian troops first entered the town last month, and fierce fighting has continued ever since. Reports indicate the Ukrainian military has fortified numerous buildings and residences within Yunakovka in an attempt to hold the town.
If Yunakovka falls, it would isolate any remaining Ukrainian troops stationed along the Kursk border and provide Russian forces with a direct route toward the regional capital of Sumy, located approximately 13 miles (21 kilometers) away.
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the creation of a buffer zone along the border following the complete withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Kursk. From the northwest, Russian troops are already within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of Sumy, with recent videos showing short-range Russian drones operating near the city’s outskirts.
Elsewhere along the front, Russian forces continue to make slow but steady gains, including reported crossings into Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region from two different directions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed growing frustration over the decline in international focus on Ukraine’s war effort. Speaking over the weekend, Zelensky warned that military aid to Kyiv “should not decrease because of this,” referring to the Israel-Iran crisis. He also noted that existing Western support has already diminished in recent months.
Zelensky further cautioned that a rise in global oil prices—spurred by wider Middle Eastern conflict—could financially benefit Russia, strengthening its war effort through increased energy revenues.