Russian Sabotage Groups Attempt Seven Border Breaches in Last Two Weeks

In the past fortnight, Russian sabotage-reconnaissance groups (DRG) made seven attempts to breach Ukraine's border, according to Lieutenant General Serhiy Naev, the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

As he stated on his Telegram channel, these infiltration efforts came mainly from the Bryansk and Kursk, and partly from the Belgorod regions of Russia, targeting the Chernihiv, Sumy regions, and the Bogodukhiv district of the Kharkiv region.

Naev reported that Ukrainian defense forces successfully detected and responded to five of these attempts, ambushing and inflicting damage on the Russians who retreated after sustaining losses.

One specific incident involved a DRG trying to cross the state border in the Myropyllya region of Sumy.

"Thanks to technical means, they were detected in a timely manner, and they were attacked using mortars, artillery, and small arms fire," the general said.

On Dec. 14, the State Border Service announced that Russian saboteurs had attempted once again to infiltrate the Sumy region, which led to a firefight between Ukrainian border guards and the interlopers. Following the battle, the Russians retreated. The extent of their losses is currently being determined.

The Center of National Resistance had previously warned about the movement of special units from the Main Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces in the Belgorod region, in order to organize sabotage operations in the Sumy region.

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Colonel Vladyslav Seleznyov, former head of the AFU's General Staff press service, informed Kyiv Post that the recent activaty in the Sumy region involved Russian special forces units from the Kursk region conducting search, raid, and sabotage acts.

Seleznyov noted, “the enemy has resources, and it is important for him, having the appropriate set of resources, to scatter our forces as much as possible so that we do not have the opportunity to use them.”

He stressed that the Russians are attempting to compel the Ukrainian General Staff to maintain a substantial defense force presence in the Sumy region, diverting resources from other more strategically important areas.

In October, Naev reported an incident where a Russian DRG, consisting of eight individuals, attempted to infiltrate Sumy Oblast probably attempting to attack a nearby critical infrastructure target. Ukrainian forces repulsed the attack using mortar and artillery fire, forcing the Russians to retreat with losses.