Russia's Medvedev claims buffer zone could cover nearly all of Ukraine

The Russian official, known for his unrealistic threats, posted a video showing almost all of Ukraine marked as the "buffer zone."

"If military aid to the Banderite regime continues, the buffer zone could look like this," he wrote.

If military aid to the Banderite regime continues, the buffer zone could look like this: pic.twitter.com/0ueLOTeJaH

— Dmitry Medvedev (@MedvedevRussiaE) May 25, 2025

Background

On Thursday, May 22, Russian President Vladimir Putin said it was decided to create the necessary buffer zone of security along the border.

"Our armed forces are now solving this problem, actively suppressing enemy firing points; the work is underway," Putin said.

He did not provide any specific details. However, pro-Kremlin media reported that he was referring to the Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod regions, which border the Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv regions of Ukraine.

Later, Lieutenant General Viktor Sobolev, a member of the State Duma Defense Committee, said that the so-called "buffer zone" should cover as many as six Ukrainian regions.

"I think that the security buffer zone should cover the border regions where, in particular, our new regions are located. That is, parts of Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Mykolaiv, and Odesa regions," he said.

On the Ukrainian side, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi and Head of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation Andriy Kovalenko noted that Putin is not speaking about such fantasies for the first time. Tykhyi emphasized that Putin's words show that he and Russia are the real obstacles to current peace efforts.

For more details on how many times Putin has spoken about the buffer zone and Ukraine's response, read RBC-Ukraine's report.