Putin orders military to establish large buffer zone within Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin is returning to a strategy he first announced last year?
Russian President Vladimir Putin is returning to a strategy he first announced last year, but which appeared to have been thwarted or shelved by Ukraine’s invasion of Kursk. Now that Kursk has been liberated from more than six months of occupation by Ukrainian troops, Putin is again talking about a “buffer zone” along the southern border.
Russian forces are seeking to establish a large security zone along the Russia-Ukraine border, Putin announced Thursday during a meeting with ministers and Kremlin officials. “We have agreed to establish a necessary security zone along our borders. Our armed forces are actively working on the implementation of this task,” the Russian leader said, writes Tyler Durden .
Putin has returned from his personal visit to the Kursk region , which took place on Tuesday and was the first since the cross-border invasion by Ukraine in August.
However, the southern oblasts are still threatened by almost daily artillery and drone attacks. An important reason for the buffer zone is the restoration of full stability in Russian border towns and villages, for example in Belgorod :
He stressed that, given the recent developments in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions, immediate efforts are needed to restore and rebuild the areas affected by the recent events. This includes assisting local residents in returning to their native villages, provided the security situation allows. Furthermore, it is essential to restore transport networks and other infrastructure, ensure the smooth operation of industrial and agricultural enterprises , and support entrepreneurs and their employees.
This month alone, hundreds of drones have been fired from Ukraine into southern oblasts, some as far away as Moscow, leading to the suspension of commercial flights this week (not for the first time).
The timing of Putin's buffer zone plan is telling, as President Trump is currently widely seen as "taking a step back" from pursuing a final peace deal.
For months, President Trump has threatened to simply walk away from the frustrating ceasefire negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
After a phone call on Monday between Trump and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin, that appears to be exactly what the American president is doing . The deeper question now is whether he will also continue America’s three-year project to prop up Ukraine, which he has often described as a fledgling democracy subject to an illegal invasion.
The Times concluded: “In a U-turn, President Trump appears to be backing away from joining a European initiative for new sanctions on Russia, seemingly eager to get on with cutting business deals with the country.”
And yet, Western allies spoke out loudly on Thursday:
Is Putin preparing to expand his operations in Ukraine? This buffer zone could mean that the Russian military will make new attempts to gain control of parts of Kharkov, Sumy and Chernigov. Is Sumy next?
It was only a day ago that Putin accepted the following in a humorous way :
President Vladimir Putin appeared to take the military seizure of Ukraine's Sumy region lightly during a visit to Russia's southwestern Kursk region, while the Kremlin claims it is seeking a negotiated end to the war.
The moment was captured on video published by the state news agency TASS, in which a local official from the Glushkovsky district, near the border with Ukraine , told Putin : “Sumy must be ours.”
“We can’t live as if we were on some peninsula. There should be more of us [Russians]. At least in Sumy,” the official, Pavel Zolotarev, added. “With you as commander-in-chief, we will be victorious.”
All this has Kiev and Europe deeply concerned that Putin will have more free rein now that Trump may ease pressure on Moscow. The White House has so far resisted tougher sanctions, despite lobbying from Europe.
