(continued from above)
[[[A statement from Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said Ukrainian reserve units had been deployed to northern Kharkiv region after Vovchansk came under intense Russian s ing Thursday night.
The statement said Russian reconnaissance groups under cover of armored vehicles began a cross-border push at about 5:00am.
“The enemy was able to cross the border 1 km (0.62 miles) deep,” a Ukrainian military source told CNN, adding the goal of the Russian push “was to get 10 km deep and create a buffer zone at the border to secure Russian territory from feeling the war.”
The war has been fought along fronts in the south and east since the Ukrainian military pushed back Russian forces from territory taken in the early days of the conflict, with northern Kharkiv region liberated in the late summer of 2022.
Asked about developments, Zelensky did not downplay their seriousness but said Ukraine’s military had been expecting such a move.]]]