“The information circulated by foreign media about a 50,000-strong Russian grouping near the Ukrainian border, allegedly to attack Kharkiv, does not reflect reality,” the massage said.
The clarification came after Sky News reported that remnants of a 50,000-strong Russian force were stationed just across the border from Kharkiv.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia was amassing over 50,000 troops, but in the Sumy sector, further north.
A May 27 report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) indicated that Russia is redeploying forces from Donetsk Oblast to Sumy Oblast, suggesting a shift in focus for future offensive operations.
Ukrainian State Border Guard Service spokesman Andriy Demchenko recently confirmed increased Russian attempts to breach Ukrainian defenses in Sumy using small assault groups.
On May 15, Zelenskyy said Russia had been conducting offensive operations along the entire front for months, but had focused most of its efforts on the Sumy direction, where about 67,000 troops were reportedly deployed.