Russia claims control of border village in Ukraine's Sumy region

Russia claims control of Potapivka village in Ukraine's Sumy region amid ongoing military efforts to establish a buffer zone.

The Russian Defence Ministry said Sunday (March 22, 2026) its forces had taken control of Potapivka, a tiny village near the Russian border in Ukraine's northern Sumy region.

The Russian army has been trying to establish a "buffer zone" in the Sumy region for months, making small, localised breakthroughs across the border.

Ukraine says it is holding back Russia's advances and that Moscow has struggled to establish a meaningful foothold in the region.

"As a result of determined actions, units of the Northern grouping of soldiers established control over the village of Potapovka in the Sumy region," the Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement, using the Russian name for the village.

Ukraine did not immediately respond to Russia's claims.

Russia occupies around a fifth of Ukraine, most of which it seized following the launch of its 2022 full-scale offensive. Its advances in February were the slowest in nearly two years, according to an AFP analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).