“Russia attacked first, not us,” chimes in Valera with his window down. “Now our guys have responded and shown what we’re capable of. We’d have captured it earlier if we’d had permission.”
Ukraine, it seems, finally has the Western green light it had been yearning for to strike across the border.
The stakes are still dauntingly high, as illustrated by new defences being built on the outskirts of Sumy city.
Until last week, the area had been fearing a Russian offensive in Ukraine’s north. If Ukraine’s incursion fails, those worries could be realised quickly.
Ukrainian forces were, and still are, outnumbered by the Russian aggressors.
“For us to keep hold of this Russian territory we need two things,” writes our Ukrainian soldier on enemy soil.
“More towns like Sudzha under our control, and reserves,” he says.
“Our front line is already bursting at the seams, and it’s not clear where we will get them.”
For Kyiv, the logic or hope is that Russia is forced to switch focus from fighting on Ukrainian soil to its own.
Some in Ukraine believe this counter-offensive could even boost its position in any future peace negotiations.
It could equally push talks even further away.
Additional reporting by Hanna Chornous, Sophie Williams and Anastasiia Levchenko.
