Russia’s defense ministry this Monday pushed the version that its forces have repelled all enemy attacks, though the Ukrainian army claims to have recaptured five sites since the start of its counter-offensive.
The Russian ministry guarantees that the forces commanded by Moscow have repelled five Ukrainian attacks in the past 24 hours in the regions of Donetsk and Zaporijia, which were largely controlled by Russian troops.
Moscow added that in three of these offensives on the administrative border between the two eastern regions, Ukrainian forces reportedly lost more than 120 troops, as well as two tanks and three armored vehicles.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the bloodiest fighting is taking place around the Márinka and Avdíivka redoubts, on the outskirts of the regional capital Donetsk, where the enemy is said to have lost some 140 soldiers.
Last Monday, the Ukrainian army announced the liberation of a small town (Novodarivka) in Zaporijia, to which should be added the four towns recaptured in the past four days in Donetsk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday acknowledged the start of the counter-offensive, which Moscow says began on June 4.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that all Ukrainian offensives had failed, but that Kiev still retained its “offensive potential”.
The military offensive launched by Russia in Ukraine on February 24, 2022 has so far led to the flight of more than 14.7 million people – 6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.2 million to European countries – according to the latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
The Russian invasion – justified by the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, with the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russian security – was condemned by the international community at large, which responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and Russia political and economic sanctions.
Source: DN
