Putin’s ‘Buffer Zone’: Invasion or Stalling? Kharkiv & Sumy at Risk – Ukraine war map 23/May/2025

Putin’s ‘Buffer Zone’: Invasion or Stalling? Kharkiv & Sumy at Risk – Ukraine war map

The situation in Ukraine remains critical. Putin has reiterated plans to create a “buffer zone” along the border, showing no intention of ending the war. Ukraine sees ongoing peace negotiations as a smokescreen, especially since Trump has refused to impose new sanctions after speaking with Putin.

The front lines are under intense pressure. Russian forces are making small but steady advances, especially near Chasiv Yar, Kostiantynivka, and Pokrovsk. Ukrainian troops admit they lack manpower and reserves, creating vulnerabilities.

A second round of peace talks is tentatively planned for mid-June at the Vatican, but Ukraine demands a 1000-for-1000 prisoner exchange before proceeding. Russia claims Ukraine hasn’t submitted its list, while Kyiv says it has — creating a diplomatic deadlock.

General Zaluzhnyi warned Ukraine likely won’t return to pre-war borders, as Russia still has sufficient resources to continue the war.

Russian attacks are intensifying across multiple fronts, though in many areas, Ukrainian forces are holding positions despite the pressure. The situation is particularly dangerous near Dnipropetrovsk, where Russian forces may be pushing toward a broader offensive.

Meanwhile, U.S. politicians criticize Putin’s manipulation of ceasefire talks and call for renewed sanctions.

#ukraine #russia #counteroffensive #news #map #update #latest

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Hello, my friends. Today, I want to start with 
yet another statement from Putin that clearly   shows they have no intention of ending 
the war. The ongoing negotiations are   just a smokescreen — meant to prevent Trump from 
imposing new sanctions on Russia. And apparently,   that tactic worked. Trump has indeed refused to 
introduce sanctions. This time, Putin said their   plans remain unchanged, and they will continue 
creating a buffer zone along the border. Let   me repeat: this concerns the Kursk, Bryansk, and 
Belgorod regions — all of which have suffered and   continue to suffer from shelling. The targets the 
enemy chooses are usually not of military value.   They’re hitting civilian sites, homes, people 
— and today’s events only confirm that. During   drone raids and sabotage-reconnaissance group 
operations, they’re going after civilian vehicles,   including ambulances and farm equipment. Women 
and children are being killed or injured. The   Ukrainian side has responded to this statement. 
This isn’t the first time Putin has mentioned a   buffer zone — he said the same thing a 
year ago but failed to follow through,   even though he tried to use it as a scare tactic. 
Now, it’s just a demonstration that he has no   intention of stopping the fire. But considering 
that just days ago, the Ukrainian side reported a   buildup of Russian forces near the Kharkiv border, 
and the governor of Russia’s Kursk region publicly   stated that Sumy should be under Russian control 
to create a buffer zone for the Kursk region,   there’s a real chance we could see increased 
military activity soon — either in the Kharkiv   or Sumy direction. For now, it’s still an open 
question. But all these statements are clearly   not accidental. Also, it seems like the Russians 
have plenty of time on their hands. Today,   it was revealed that the second round of peace 
talks will most likely happen in mid-June at the   Vatican. According to the WSJ, peace negotiations 
at the Vatican to end the war in Ukraine may begin   in mid-June. During a call with European leaders 
on Sunday, the U.S. President said he would send   Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House 
special envoy Keith Kellogg to attend. However,   by Monday — after speaking with Putin — he no 
longer confirmed the U.S. role in the talks.   The point is: mid-June is just three weeks away, 
and at this pace, these negotiations could drag   on for years. We’ve already seen that the first 
round of talks produced no real results — not even   an agreement on prisoner exchanges. Ukraine 
has stated that they will not proceed with a   second round of talks until a prisoner exchange 
takes place. Andriy Yermak made it clear that   the second round of negotiations between Ukraine 
and Russia will only take place after a prisoner   swap in a 1000-for-1000 format. “Our position 
is clear: the first step must be an agreement   on a prisoner exchange, 1000 for 1000. The second 
step is choosing the location for the next meeting   with Russian representatives,” said the Head of 
the Office of the President after a conversation   with leaders from Northern and Baltic Europe. 
But the problem is, Peskov claimed that it’s   Ukraine who is stalling the prisoner exchange 
process, allegedly not submitting its list.   “Russia has handed over a list of names for a 
1000-for-1000 exchange,” said Peskov. “We really   did submit our list. We have not yet received 
a reciprocal list from Kyiv. We’re waiting,” he   added. As always, it’s a vicious circle: Ukraine 
insists it has sent the list, while Peskov claims   they haven’t received anything. This once again 
shows that with this kind of approach and these   kinds of diplomats, the negotiations are going 
to drag on for a very long time. And honestly,   it’s unclear if we’ll see any results at all — 
if even a basic prisoner exchange still hasn’t   happened. Friends, share your thoughts in 
the comments — what do you think? Also,   today, the situation on the front lines is very 
grim. General Zaluzhnyi made a strong statement,   saying that Ukraine will not return to 
its previous borders, and Russia still   has plenty of resources to continue the war. 
Let’s talk about war and security in general.   I hope that no one in this room still believes 
in some miracle — some white swan that will bring   peace to Ukraine, restore the 1991 or even 2022 
borders, and suddenly everything will be great.   Personally, I believe that as long as the enemy 
has the resources, forces, and means to strike   our territory and carry out offensive operations 
— they will continue doing so. Russia’s ability   to wage war depends entirely on its access 
to the resources it needs to keep going.   So overall, friends — leave your thoughts in the 
comments. Now let’s move on to the front lines.   We’ll start with Chasiv Yar. Today, attacks are 
ongoing in the central part of the city — the   Russians are storming the area around Predtechyne, 
pushing toward Dolivka, and fighting near Druzhba.   However, there are no significant changes in 
positions there yet. In the Kostiantynivka   direction, the Russians are trying to break 
through toward Yablunivka, aiming to close the   encirclement. They’re also assaulting the villages 
of Zorya and Zabalka. According to Ukrainian   soldiers, they simply don’t have enough forces to 
hold the defense: The Russians are moving into a   deep phase of the offensive, knowing full well 
that we don’t have enough troops here. They are   literally slicing through the front and trying 
to eventually get behind Kostiantynivka. They’re   acting in a coordinated, deliberate way, throwing 
in all available forces to crush our defense. Call   it what you want — betrayal or just a brutal lack 
of manpower — but that’s the reality. The Russians   have now approached Poltavka. If we lose three key 
points, they’ll gain control over the entire area   up to the Kazennyi Torets River, cutting off our 
ability to move reserves. And as we all know — we   don’t have enough reserves to stop a full-scale 
push. They’re actively probing for weak spots in   our lines and will attack wherever our presence is 
weakest — frankly, that’s a disaster. If we shift   reinforcements to this area, another direction 
will become vulnerable. Things are really bad   here — this axis is on fire, and every single day 
the Russians make progress, little by little. As   we can see, Ukrainian troops are now openly 
admitting that they’re short on strength to   maintain the defense. Every day, the Russians 
advance position by position. And if reserves   are pulled from one sector, the front might 
collapse elsewhere. The situation is critical.   In the Pokrovsk direction, the story is much the 
same. Ukrainian troops report that Russian forces   are advancing in absurdly large numbers. The 
direction near Myrnohrad continues to collapse.   The Russians have identified weak spots and is 
pouring infantry into them in crazy numbers.   That’s why they’re making progress. Malynivka is 
basically lost, while fighting still rages around   Myroliubivka. There are only a few kilometers 
left to Novoekonomichne. At this pace, we could   see battles for the village begin in a matter of 
weeks — though I hope I’m wrong. Novoekonomichne   is one of the key strongholds for the defense 
of the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad agglomeration. The   only line that’s still holding without any loss of 
positions is Promin-Balahan and everything west of   Hrodivka. The marines secured that line last year, 
and so far, it’s holding. The situation along this   entire front is extremely difficult, with no 
signs of improvement. So once again, friends,   let me know what you think in the comments — 
because the Russians are pressing from every   direction, and now we’re seeing new advances 
dangerously close to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.   This shows that the Russians are continuing their 
push to encircle Pokrovsk. Today, they are trying   to break through near Popiv Yar, assaulting 
Nova Poltavka — and their main goal here is to   reach the village of Koptyeve. From there, they 
could gain control over all the roads leading   to Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk. FPV drones already 
cover this entire zone, meaning logistics will   deteriorate even further. That, in turn, will make 
their advance easier. So these movements — even if   small on the map — have major consequences 
for the front line situation. Meanwhile,   the Russians continue to assault Myroliubivka, 
Promin, Lysivka, Dacherske, and they’re trying   to break through near Kotlene, Udachne, and 
Novosergiivka. No major territorial changes   have been confirmed in the last 24 hours — but 
the situation remains catastrophic even without   new gains. In the Novopavlivka direction, Russian 
forces are storming Novomykhailivka, while battles   are ongoing near Kotliarivka. Assaults continue on 
Troitske, Oleksiivka, Bohatyr, and Odradne — but   again, there have been no significant advancements 
reported yet. Still, what’s deeply alarming is   that Russian forces are now getting dangerously 
close to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. And right now,   we don’t know what their next steps are. If 
Putin decides that Donetsk and Luhansk “need a   buffer zone,” they may soon try to push further 
into Dnipropetrovsk. So as of now, it’s hard   to say what awaits us next. In the Velyka 
Novosilka area, Russian forces are attacking   the village of Vesele, pushing toward Shevchenko, 
and storming Vilne Pole, Zelene Pole, and Novopil.   Shelling in this area remains relentless, but 
for now, Ukrainian forces are holding the line   and no territorial changes have been recorded 
in the past 24 hours. In the Huliaipole area,   the Russians continue their activity — most likely 
to divert our forces from the main axes of attack.   They’re launching assaults near the village 
of Vesele and shelling Huliaipole. However,   again, no changes in the front line have occurred 
over the past day. In the Zaporizhzhia direction,   Russian forces are storming Chervonohryhorivka, 
Stepove, and pushing toward Pavlivka. It’s clear   they’re trying to extend the front line further in 
the direction of Zaporizhzhia. However, Ukrainian   forces are successfully repelling all attacks, and 
so far no serious breakthrough has occurred. In   the Kherson direction, the Russians are advancing 
on the islands in the Dnipro River and shelling   the right bank. There is no official confirmation 
of Russian sabotage and reconnaissance groups   crossing to the right bank, despite Russian claims 
of an imminent large-scale offensive. As of now,   no changes have been recorded in the past 24 
hours. We are closely monitoring how the situation   develops. In the Siversk direction, Russian forces 
are storming Bilohorivka and attempting to break   through in the Serebryansky Forest toward Yampil. 
However, no gains were recorded in the past 24   hours, and the front line remains stable for 
now. In the Lyman direction, attacks continue   on Zelena Dolyna, Ridkodub, Novyi Myr, Olhivka, 
and Druzhuliubivka. Despite high Russian activity,   the front line remains unchanged, just like 
in previous days. In the Borova direction,   Russian forces are assaulting Bohuslavka, 
Nova Kryuliakivka, and attempting to advance   toward Novosergiivka. However, they have not 
managed to break through, and the front line   remains unchanged. In the Kupiansk direction, 
Russian troops are attempting to stretch the   northern flank above the city to enable a possible 
future encirclement. They are once again storming   Mala Shapkivka and Kindrashivka. Apart from this, 
Russian activity remains low, and there have been   no changes along the front line in the past 24 
hours. In the Dvorichna direction, Russian forces   are attempting to push near Kamianka, but the 
Ukrainian Armed Forces are successfully repelling   all attacks, and the front line remains unchanged. 
In the Kharkiv direction, Russian troops are not   showing any significant activity for now, and 
the situation remains stable. Fighting continues   for Vovchansk, but there have been no changes 
along the front line over the past 24 hours.   In the Sumy and Kursk directions, the front line 
remains stable and Russian activity is minimal.   Over the past 24 hours, there were five Russian 
assault attempts, all of which failed. Today,   a Republican senator made a strong 
call for new sanctions against Russia,   stating: Currently, negotiations are ongoing 
between Russia, Ukraine, the United States,   and Europe on how to end this war. In my view, 
Putin is playing games with all of us. President   Trump has proposed a 30-day ceasefire. Ukraine 
agreed, but Russia declined. So when we’re told,   ‘Let’s go for a ceasefire and see what happens’ 
– no. We’ve been through this before. We’re not   going down that road again. Macron, Starmer, von 
der Leyen, and other European figures who are now   frantically demanding U.S. action against Russia 
and more sanctions – their desperation is showing.   A few days ago, a call took place between 
Trump and Putin. Russia is now expected to   present a written proposal for a ceasefire 
in the coming days. A potential summit in   the Vatican for direct talks is being discussed. 
After speaking with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump   told European leaders that Putin is not ready for 
peace, believing that Russia is winning the war.   This marks Trump’s first agreement with Kyiv and 
European capitals on the matter. However, Trump   refused to support new sanctions against Russia. 
A sanctions bill may still pass if it secures at   least 67 votes in the Senate and a two-thirds 
majority in the House of Representatives.   We’ve given Russia multiple chances to end this 
war with dignity. They’re not interested. They   won’t change. Unless someone raises the stakes. 
I feel sorry for the Russian people, but it’s   time to raise the cost of this war for Putin. 
The new sanctions package has 80 co-sponsors   in the Senate, and the number is growing. The 
package also targets China and includes tariffs   and sanctions on countries that purchase Russian 
oil and gas through the shadow fleet. According   to the International Energy Agency, China and 
India remain the main buyers of Russian oil.