Russian Missile Attack on Sumy Shows War Still Raging in Ukraine

What Happened?

On Sunday, Russia launched a missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Sumy, which is located in the north-eastern portion of Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities, at least thirty-one people were killed by the attack and eighty more were wounded. 

Ukrainian President, Zelensky, issued a statement saying, ‘This happened on a day when people go to church — Palm Sunday, the Feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem.’ Russian authorities had no immediate comment on the strike.

President Trump expressed frustration with the attack with a statement criticizing Russia: ‘Russia needs to get moving. Too many people are DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war.’

Why it Matters

In March, the Trump Administration claimed to have arranged a partial cease fire between Ukraine and Russia. But the number of attacks between the two combatants have largely continued with little sign of slowing down. 

Ukrainian officials blamed Russia for refusing ‘to accept the U.S. proposal for a full ceasefire,’ after Ukraine endorsed the proposal last month. ‘Instead, Russia ramps up its terror.’ Russian officials have blamed Ukraine. The continued fighting and blaming are consistent with the recent history between Ukraine and Russia.

After fighting began in 2014 in the Donbas region, there have been several cease fire agreements and several different negotiations, all of which ended the same way. With continued fighting and each side blaming the other for violating previous agreements. The Minsk Accords are but one example, when they were signed the international community for a time believed progress had been made, but fighting resumed shortly thereafter.

While the Trump Administrations frustration with Russia is understandable, Russia’s actions are not surprising. Russia negotiated in bad faith with the Trump Administration, never really intending to stop military operations.

Instead, Russia hoped to use any pauses in aid to Ukraine or other diplomatic maneuvering as opportunities to make gains on the battlefield. Russian officials, including Mr. Putin, regard diplomacy as part of war, not something separate from armed conflict.

Attacks on Ukrainian civilians, on a religious holiday, will likely only increase their resolve to keep fighting. Though Ukrainians are war weary, the massacre of civilians in a church will likely become another rallying cry for frontline troops engaged in combat against Russia. 

How it Affects You

The continued fighting is not only bad for Ukraine, but also a blow to the Trump Administration’s efforts to broker a peace deal. Russia is demanding concessions Ukrainians are unlikely to make as preconditions for peace, which means negotiations have essentially reached a dead end.

Russia’s continued belligerence also undermines Mr. Trump’s claims that the war is Ukraine’s fault. Since clearly the main reason the war is continuing now is because of the actions of the Russian government.