{"id":665072,"date":"2025-12-31T16:59:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T16:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/665072\/"},"modified":"2025-12-31T16:59:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T16:59:10","slug":"russias-top-general-tells-troops-to-keep-carving-out-buffer-zones-in-ukraine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/665072\/","title":{"rendered":"Russia&#8217;s top general tells troops to keep carving out &#8216;buffer zones&#8217; in Ukraine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Item 1 of 2 Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov attend a meeting on the &#8220;special military operation&#8221; amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict in Moscow, Russia, December 29, 2025. Sputnik\/Mikhail Metzel\/Pool via REUTERS<\/p>\n<p><b data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__medium__2Rl30 text-module__inherit-size__EyiQW body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__ultra_small_body__WelUC primary-gallery-module__pagination__3IXiB\">[1\/2]<\/b>Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov attend a meeting on the &#8220;special military operation&#8221; amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict in Moscow, Russia, December 29, 2025. Sputnik\/Mikhail Metzel\/Pool via REUTERS <a data-testid=\"Link\" target=\"_blank\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reutersconnect.com\/item\/russian-president-putin-chairs-a-meeting-in-moscow\/dGFnOnJldXRlcnMuY29tLDIwMjU6bmV3c21sX1JDMkRRSUFaVU5LUQ%3D%3D\/?utm_medium=rcom-article-media&amp;utm_campaign=rcom-rcp-lead\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__inherit-color__PhuPF text-module__inherit-font__1P1hv text-module__inherit-size__EyiQW link-module__link__INqxZ link-module__underline_default__-okuC link-module__with-icon__qlg76 collapsible-caption-module__license__CPQvV\">Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab<\/a><\/p>\n<ul data-testid=\"Summary\" class=\"summary-module__summary__QjADA\">\n<li data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__small__sph8i body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__small_body__gOmDf summary-module__point__UgXPz\">Russia&#8217;s top general visits command post<\/li>\n<li data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__small__sph8i body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__small_body__gOmDf summary-module__point__UgXPz\">Says buffer zones inside Ukraine needed to protect adjacent Russian land<\/li>\n<li data-testid=\"Body\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__small__sph8i body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__small_body__gOmDf summary-module__point__UgXPz\">Ukraine says such buffer zones represent illegal land grab<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>MOSCOW, Dec 31 (Reuters) &#8211; Russia&#8217;s top general has told troops to keep carving out buffer zones in Ukraine&#8217;s Sumy and Kharkiv regions in order to protect civilians in Russia&#8217;s neighbouring Kursk and Belgorod regions from Ukrainian attacks.<\/p>\n<p>General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff, made the comments during a visit to a command post belonging to Russia&#8217;s &#8220;North&#8221; military grouping, which the Defence Ministry publicised on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p data-testid=\"promo-box\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__small__sph8i body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__small_body__gOmDf article-body-module__promo-box__hVl8h\"> Sign up  <a data-testid=\"Link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/russias-gerasimov-says-putin-ordered-buffer-zone-expansion-ukraines-sumy-kharkiv-2025-12-31\/undefined?location=article-paragraph&amp;redirectUrl=%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Frussias-gerasimov-says-putin-ordered-buffer-zone-expansion-ukraines-sumy-kharkiv-2025-12-31%2F\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__inherit-color__PhuPF text-module__inherit-font__1P1hv text-module__inherit-size__EyiQW link-module__link__INqxZ link-module__underline_default__-okuC\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The ministry did not say when Gerasimov made the comments or where the post was located.<\/p>\n<p>There was no immediate reaction from Ukraine to Gerasimov&#8217;s comments, but Kyiv has repeatedly condemned Moscow&#8217;s efforts to carve out buffer zones inside its territory, accusing Russia of using the pretext of security zones to illegally grab more of its territory.<\/p>\n<p>Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said Moscow&#8217;s plans for Sumy and Kharkiv are <a data-testid=\"Link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/putin-says-the-whole-ukraine-is-ours-theory-may-take-city-sumy-2025-06-20\/\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__inherit-color__PhuPF text-module__inherit-font__1P1hv text-module__inherit-size__EyiQW link-module__link__INqxZ link-module__underline_default__-okuC\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cmad\u201d<\/a> and will be resisted as Ukraine defends the two regions.<\/p>\n<p>Gerasimov said Russian forces had taken control of around 950 square kilometres (366 square miles) in the two provinces, including 32 settlements.<\/p>\n<p>Reuters could not verify his battlefield assertions.<\/p>\n<p>Russian President Vladimir Putin affirmed the idea of buffer zones after Ukraine staged a surprise incursion into Russia&#8217;s Kursk region in August 2024, which Moscow&#8217;s forces then repelled in months of fierce fighting which saw both sides suffer heavy losses.<\/p>\n<p>In a Kremlin meeting on December 29, Putin called work to carve out buffer zones very important and said it needed to continue in the new year.<\/p>\n<p data-testid=\"SignOff\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__extra_small__8Buss body-module__full_width__kCIGb body-module__extra_small_body__Bfz20 sign-off-module__text__LQAMP\">Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne\/Andrew Osborn in London; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Clarence Fernandez<\/p>\n<p data-testid=\"Body\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__regular__qJJtA text-module__small__sph8i body-module__base__o--Cl body-module__small_body__gOmDf article-body-module__element__5eCce article-body-module__trust-badge__5mS3f\">Our Standards: <a data-testid=\"Link\" target=\"_blank\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thomsonreuters.com\/en\/about-us\/trust-principles.html\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"text-module__text__0GDob text-module__dark-grey__UFC18 text-module__medium__2Rl30 text-module__small__sph8i link-module__link__INqxZ link-module__underline_default__-okuC link-module__with-icon__qlg76\">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reutersagency.com\/en\/licensereuterscontent\/?utm_medium=rcom-article-media&amp;utm_campaign=rcom-rcp-lead\" target=\"_blank\" dir=\"ltr\" class=\"button-module__link__A3sD0 button-module__secondary__70gBu button-module__round__QDFgq button-module__w_auto__Sem-F\" data-testid=\"LicenceContentButton\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Purchase Licensing Rights<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Item 1 of 2 Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":665073,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[124884,521,124888,84749,124889,124879,168726,201812,202337,201806,201816,168730,168724,201809,201814,202338,201807,202336,202340,202994,202339,202341,202037,202038,202992,202993,201810,168728,202870,168722,168734,201808,168723,201815,201813,202335,168729,168732,31239,202334,12920,124890,2000,84751,124880,124881,124887,124886,12,84742,202040,124882,124885,202995,202332,54750,202025,26875,978,771,26],"class_list":["post-665072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","tag-amers","tag-asia","tag-asxpac","tag-ceeu","tag-cisc","tag-cwp","tag-destabn","tag-destafa","tag-destc","tag-destcsa","tag-destd","tag-destdnp","tag-deste","tag-destg","tag-destgns","tag-destgro","tag-destlby","tag-destm","tag-destmtl","tag-destnat","tag-desto","tag-destoil","tag-destouktpm","tag-destouswdm","tag-destpcm","tag-destpen","tag-destpge","tag-destpsc","tag-destptd","tag-destrast","tag-destrbn","tag-destreulb","tag-destrnp","tag-destrws","tag-destrwsa","tag-destsof","tag-destu","tag-destucdptest","tag-drone","tag-eeu","tag-emea","tag-emrg","tag-eu","tag-europ","tag-gen","tag-intag","tag-namer","tag-nasia","tag-news","tag-news1","tag-packageworld-news","tag-pol","tag-ru","tag-rulesrussia","tag-rulesukraine-crisis","tag-sci","tag-secur","tag-ua","tag-us","tag-war","tag-world"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=665072"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665072\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/665073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=665072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=665072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=665072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}