The Russian Ministry of Defense said that it had inflicted heavy losses on Ukraine in repelling the attack. The leadership of the Ukrainian army is silent about the reports, citing a period of media silence that will be observed about a possible attack.
The part of the front where the fighting is going on has been fairly quiet in recent months. There are conflicting reports about the course of the battle. New York times Reports, based on two unnamed sources, said that Ukrainian forces breached Russian defenses in two places. According to the newspaper, “Russian Telegram Channel” reported that a breach had occurred near the town of Velika Novoselka and the Russian defenders had to retreat there.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that the attack was to be repelled. On Telegram, the ministry wrote that on Sunday morning, eight Ukrainian battalions launched a “large-scale offensive in 5 sectors of the front near Donetsk.” “The enemy’s objective was to break through what they believed to be the most vulnerable sector of the front.”
The attack was reportedly repulsed, and according to Russian reports, 16 Ukrainian tanks, three combat vehicles, and 21 armored vehicles were destroyed in the fighting, and 250 Ukrainian soldiers were killed. It is not possible to verify the messages nor the authenticity of the images that have appeared on the Internet at this time.
Zaporizhia
Fighting is also taking place elsewhere. The Associated Press quoted Russian driver Vladimir Rogov as saying that Ukrainian forces launched an offensive in Zaporizhia. They had penetrated four hundred meters into the occupied territory before being beaten back. According to Rogov, fighting continued in Zaporizhia on Monday.
The Ukrainian army command stated that 29 fighting had broken out in recent days, spreading across the entire front line around the Russian-annexed Ukrainian provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk. No details of the fighting were provided. Russian bloggers on Twitter and Telegram also reported a series of fights this weekend.
It has not been confirmed whether or not the long-awaited offensive has started in Donetsk province. Ukrainian and military analysts have long warned that this offensive is an operation, not a moment when someone somewhere will give the go-ahead: the front line will be cleared, and there will be preliminary moves and diversions to confuse the enemy.
The attack was initially expected in the early months of this year, but Ukraine took more time, including training troops and stockpiling more heavy weapons.
