Zelensky Says War Must Go Back To Its Origin As Ukrainian Troops Enter Russia’s Belgorod Region

In his nightly address on Monday, April 7, 2025, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly confirmed for the first time that Ukrainian forces are carrying out operations in Russia’s Belgorod region. He emphasized that “war must return to where it came from.”

“We continue to carry out active operations in the border areas on enemy territory, and that is absolutely just—war must return to where it came from.”

He highlighted that these actions are intended to safeguard Ukraine’s Sumy and Kharkiv border regions, while also reducing pressure on other areas of the front line, especially in the eastern Donetsk region.

Zelensky confirmed the presence of Ukrainian forces in the Belgorod and Kursk regions, explaining that operations in these locations are meant to redirect Russian military attention away from key Ukrainian fronts.

This confirmation comes after reports from Russian military bloggers and the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), which suggested that Ukrainian forces had made progress into the Belgorod region, securing positions near the villages of Demidovka and Prilesye. These moves are thought to be strategic in nature, aiming to pressure Moscow into redeploying troops from the Donetsk region, where Russian forces have been slowly advancing.

In related news, U.S. President Donald Trump voiced concerns over Russia’s ongoing military activities in Ukraine, despite the ongoing ceasefire talks.