Russian Military Claims Victory in Donetsk, Fending Off Major Ukrainian Attack

Kyiv. The Russian military claims to have fended off a major Ukrainian attack in Donetsk. Ukrainian troops attacked five points in the south of the eastern Ukrainian region on Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said. It released a video purporting to show the alleged destruction of wartime equipment on the battlefield. It was initially unclear whether the attack reported by Moscow marked the beginning of the counter-offensive that had been announced by Ukraine for months.

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“The enemy’s goal was to break through our defenses in what they considered to be the most vulnerable sector of the front,” said ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. “The enemy has not fulfilled its tasks. He was unsuccessful.” 250 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, he explained. 16 Ukrainian tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles and 21 armored fighting vehicles were also destroyed. The Ukrainian military deployed two tank battalions, among other things, Konashenkov said.

In total, more than 900 Ukrainians were killed on all front sections within 24 hours. From the Ukrainian side there is no confirmation of such figures and the start of an offensive. Kyiv called the reports a disinformation campaign aimed at “demoralizing Ukrainians”. The information provided by the two warring parties could not be checked independently

Russia’s military leadership at the front

In addition, the Russian Chief of Staff Valeri Gerasimov was “at one of the forward command posts”. Observers found its explicit mention remarkable, especially since Russia rarely reports the presence of its military leadership during acts of war. Most recently, some Russian military bloggers and the head of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, criticized the fact that high-ranking Russian military personnel at the front did not show enough presence or initiative and did not take sufficient responsibility for military operations in Ukraine.

A representative deployed by Russia in the southeastern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia, Vladimir Rogov, told Zaporizhia on Sunday that Ukrainian soldiers had also tried to assert themselves against Russian troops there. However, they were pushed back after they advanced 400 meters into Russian-held territory. Fighting resumed on Monday morning. Ukraine sent even more fighters than the day before. “A battle is underway,” Rogow said.

Ukrainian officials have been talking for months about plans to launch a counter-offensive to bring Russian-occupied territory back under Ukrainian control. However, it is unclear which actions the Ukrainian government would count as part of the major offensive. It left open whether it was planning preliminary, limited attacks to weaken Russian troops and military installations, or large-scale, simultaneous attacks along the entire 1,100-kilometer front line.

Field commander contradicts Moscow

The Russian field commander Alexander Khodakowski, meanwhile, contradicted the Moscow reports of success. So far, the enemy has been “accompanied by success,” wrote Chodakowski on his Telegram channel on Monday. According to him, the attacks west of Wuhledar are a limited tactical operation by the Ukrainians. Khodakovsky has headed the Vostok brigade of Donbass separatists since 2014. His units were incorporated into the Russian National Guard after the start of the aggressive war against Ukraine.

At first, the Ukrainian troops gave the impression that they were stepping up the pressure on the Velika Novosilka front, where they had already made a breakthrough on Sunday. Meanwhile, a raiding party advanced almost unnoticed further east near the village of Nowodonetske. “Traditionally jamming radio communications, the enemy managed to put us in a difficult position,” wrote Chodakowski. The situation is in flux.

Ukraine initially does not comment on Russian information

According to the Defense Ministry, the Ukrainian attack began on Sunday morning. It was initially unclear why the message was delayed until Monday morning. Ukraine initially did not comment on the information from Moscow.

Donetsk is one of the four Ukrainian regions that Russia illegally annexed last fall. For months, Ukrainian officials have been announcing a counter-offensive to reclaim territory Russia has held since the February 24, 2022 invasion. But this also includes the Crimean Peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014, sources in Kiev say. But the Ukrainian government has sent conflicting signals about what constitutes a major offensive. It left open whether it was planning preliminary, limited attacks to weaken Russian troops and military installations, or large-scale, simultaneous attacks along the entire 1,100-kilometer front line.

According to experts, at least two factors should play a role in the timing of the Ukrainian counter-offensive: waiting for better ground conditions for troop movements and the transport of equipment after the winter, as well as the delivery of further modern weapons from the West and the training of Ukrainian soldiers in their use Mission.

RND/AP/dpa

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