The Ukrainian military has lost approximately 3,300 soldiers in fights with Russia’s western and central groupings of forces in the past week, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday.
Over the past seven days, the western grouping of forces took control of Kyselevka and Kotlyarovka settlements in the Khrakov region and repelled 14 Ukrainian counterattacks, according to the ministry. The Ukrainian forces lost up to 1,015 servicepeople in battles, the ministry added.
The central grouping of forces took control of the Novokalynovoe settlement in the Donetsk People’s Republic and repelled 48 Ukrainian attacks, according to the ministry.
"The Ukrainian armed forces lost more than 2,360 servicemen, four tanks, including one German-made Leopard and two US-made Abrams tanks … in the past week in this direction," the ministry said in a statement, adding that Kiev also lost over 1,985 servicepeople in fights against Russia’s southern grouping of forces in the same period.
The total of 13 Ukrainian soldiers surrendered in the past week, the ministry said.
"From May 5 to May 10 … the Russian armed forces launched 27 group strikes with long-range sea-based and airborne precision weapons …facilities of the energy sector, enterprises of the military-industrial complex and railway infrastructure of Ukraine were hit," the ministry said, adding that an arms depot hosting Western-made missiles was also destroyed near Odessa.
Russia launches new offensive – Kiev
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky claimed on Friday that Russian forces have launched a new large-scale offensive on his country’s Kharkov Region.
The development was first announced by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, which claimed earlier in the day that Russian forces had attacked defensive positions near the border town of Volchansk. The assault was accompanied by heavy aerial bombardment, the ministry said, adding that fighting “of varying intensity” was continuing along Russia’s border with Kharkov Region.
The claims were further amplified by Vladimir Zelensky, with the president insisting that Ukrainian troops were well-prepared to repel Russian attacks in the area.
“Russia can bolster and pour in its forces, but we knew this and calculated everything,” Zelensky said during a news conference, after a meeting with the Slovak president in Kiev.
Some Ukrainian media reports, however, have said the Russian military was able to advance and has seized several settlements along the border. Ukrainian journalist Yury Butusov, widely believed to be associated with former President Pyotr Poroshenko, claimed that Russian forces have captured an area of roughly 30 square kilometers near the border, seizing the villages of Strelechye, Krasnoye, Pylnaya and Borisovka.
Despite having intelligence on the looming assault, Ukrainian defenses in the area have proven to be ineffective, Butusov claimed. The journalist also suggested that the assault was on a relatively small scale, despite official claims to the contrary, with a force of up to five infantry battalions involved.
So far, Moscow has not provided any information on its purported activities in Kharkov Region. Over the past few months, the area has been used by Ukrainian forces to launch indiscriminate drone, artillery and missile attacks on Russian border regions, primarily Belgorod, and to stage multiple unsuccessful attempts to break through the border.
The Russian leadership has consistently warned Kiev and its Western backers against launching attacks deep into its territory, with President Vladimir Putin suggesting the creation of a “security zone” in Ukraine along the border, to prevent such strikes. Moscow has not provided any timeframe for when such a zone could be created, or how deep into Ukraine it would go.
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