‘I’m Watching Closely’ – Trump Comments on 50,000 Russian Troops Deployed Near Sumy

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he is “closely” monitoring the massing of Russian forces near Ukraine’s northeastern city of Sumy, which lies approximately 31 kilometers (19 miles) from the Russian border, and where Russian troops have been gaining meager gains in recent months.

Trump, in answer to a reporter’s question on Tuesday on what he would do if Russia “authorizes an offensive,” said he would monitor the situation. 

“We’ll see what happens. I’m watching it very closely,” Trump said. 

Trump has been trying to negotiate an end to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine by first pushing for a ceasefire, but Russia has refused to budge by insisting on ever more pre-conditions, such as the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Ukrainian territory, which Kyiv considers to be non-starters.

Trump has thus far refused to pressure Moscow into accepting his ceasefire proposal, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently arguing that doing so might alienate Moscow from the talks despite Moscow having shown no interest in complying thus far. 

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Monday that Russian troops are within 19 kilometers (12 miles) of Sumy, with Moscow having assembled 50,000 troops in the region after pushing most of Kyiv’s troops out of its Kursk region. 

Moscow’s troop build up near Ukraine’s Sumy region amounts to approximately a third of the forces it deployed at the The number of Moscow’s troops positioned near Ukraine’s Sumy region is equivalent to approximately a third of the forces it deployed at the beginning of the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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The WSJ report contradicted recent remarks by Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky, who said on Thursday, June 26, that Kyiv had contained Russian advances in the Sumy region and tied down around 50,000 Russian soldiers, including elite airborne and marine brigades. 

“The Russian advance in the Sumy border zone has been stopped as of this week, and the front line has been stabilized,” Syrsky said.

A recent report by The Telegraph also argued that Russia’s summer offensive has stalled, with Russian troops failing to break through defenses in Sumy.

The Sumy region was the launch point for Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region last year. Ukrainian forces held parts of the territory for eight months before being pushed back by Russia’s spring offensive, supported by North Korean troops.

Since then, Moscow has advanced toward the city of Sumy, capturing several villages and prompting the mandatory evacuation of civilians. Once home to 255,000 residents before the 2022 full-scale invasion, the northern Ukrainian city now sits on the edge of renewed fighting.

However, Ukrainian forces have begun to regain ground. On June 14, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian troops had liberated the village of Andriivka, near the the Sumy region’s border.