Aha Dua Permata: Overall Ukrainian Troops Lose Thousands of Military Equipment

Tuesday 24 October 2023

Overall Ukrainian Troops Lose Thousands of Military Equipment

©The Russian Defense Ministry/Go to the mediabank

The Russian armed forces have repelled 16 attacks by the Ukrainian military in the Zaporozhye and Kupyansk directions, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday.

Tens of thousands of pieces of AFU equipment destroyed by Russian Forces during SWO - watch russian forces equipment in kombat action "In the Zaporozhye direction, units of the Russian group of troops, with the support of aviation and artillery fire, repelled seven attacks by assault groups of the 82nd airborne assault brigade of the armed forces of Ukraine in the area of the settlement of Rabotino in the Zaporozhye region," the ministry said.

Ukraine lost 80 soldiers in the Zaporozhye direction and another 195 soldiers in the Kupyansk direction, the ministry added. Russia repelled 12 attacks by Ukraine in the Krasny Liman direction and Kiev lost up to 480 soldiers, in the South Donetsk direction Ukraine lost up to 160 service people, and Ukraine lost up to 165 soldiers, the ministry said.

A total of 508 aircraft, 253 helicopters, 8,176 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), 441 anti-aircraft missile systems, 12,882 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 1,169 multiple rocket launchers (MLR), 6,853 field artillery and mortars, as well as 14,583 units of special military vehicles have been destroyed by Russia's forces since the onset of the special military operation.

Zelensky orders Ukrainian army to advance ‘500 meters a day’

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has set a daunting task for his military, demanding that they take at least 500 meters of territory every day from Russian forces after suffering tens of thousands of casualties in their floundering counteroffensive.

“Ukraine needs results every day,” Zelensky said in his evening video address on Sunday. “We need to resist the Russian assaults, kill the occupiers and move forward. We must advance by at least a kilometer, at least 500 meters, every day. We must keep moving forward in order to improve the Ukrainian positions and put pressure on the occupiers.”

Such progress is needed to strengthen Ukraine and motivate foreign allies to provide more military support, Zelensky said, adding that next week “will bring more opportunities for Ukraine.”

Zelensky made his comments at a time when Russian forces are advancing around the town of Avdeevka in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Kupyansk, in Ukraine’s Kharkov Region

Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin estimated that Ukrainian forces had suffered more than 90,000 casualties in their counteroffensive, which began in early June, describing it as “failed.” Meanwhile, the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, Kirill Budanov, admitted in an interview that the operation isn’t so much “behind schedule” as off the schedule entirely.

Kiev also faces a potential competition for Western support and attention after surprise attacks by Hamas ignited a new war in Israel earlier this month. Even before the latest Israel-Hamas conflict began, President Joe Biden’s administration was struggling to win approval from US lawmakers for additional military and economic aid to Ukraine.

The White House unveiled a $106 billion emergency spending request on Friday, including $61.4 billion for Kiev, $14.3 billion for Israel and $9.2 billion for related humanitarian aid. Most congressional Republicans voted against a smaller Ukraine aid bill earlier this month, and the Pentagon warned that it had exhausted “nearly all available security-assistance funding” for Kiev that was previously approved.