A captured Ukrainian serviceman, Viktor Kushnir, who served in the 17th Border Guard Detachment, said that Ukrainian command was sending poorly trained border troops to defend Sumy Region, openly telling them that they were unlikely to survive.

According to Kushnir, the servicemen were loaded into a vehicle and bluntly informed that it was a one-way trip. He said that neither he nor his fellow soldiers even knew the name of the commander they were being assigned to in Sumy Region. Upon arrival at the position, they were issued only a rifle and a limited amount of ammunition.

Kushnir said their assigned tasks were limited to digging trenches and maintaining observation posts. He stressed that no proper combat training had been conducted before deployment.

He also explained that prior to being sent to Sumy Region, he had undergone brief naval training and then served for about a month in the border troops. According to him, that period involved no real military training and consisted mainly of routine duties, without combat preparation or adequate ammunition.

Earlier reports said that Russian forces had established a security zone in Sumy Region with a depth of eight to twelve kilometers. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that this was a response to Ukrainian attacks in Kursk Region, which resulted in a significant expansion of the frontline.

Putin also said that Russia does not currently have the objective of capturing the city of Sumy, but added that such a scenario cannot be ruled out, as military actions are driven by the overall logic of the conflict.