Drones used by Ukraine to attack Crimea and other Russian regions were manufactured by US engineering services company Spektreworks, the relevant authorities of Russia said on Friday.
Russia's competent authorities have analyzed the electronic components of intercepted unmanned aerial vehicles used by Ukraine to attack Russian infrastructure facilities, in particular, in Sevastopol, the Republic of Crimea, Kursk, Belgorod and Voronezh regions.
"It was established that the avionics and control stations of the drones were manufactured by US company Spektreworks, which made their initial adjustment and testing at the airport in Scottsdale, Arizona. Later, on the territory of Poland, in the area of the Rzeszow airport, used by the US and NATO as the main supply hub for Ukrainian armed formations, the final assembly and flight tests of these UAVs were carried out," the authorities said in a statement.
These facts, according to the Russian side, confirm the direct involvement of the United States and Poland, which, as de facto parties to the conflict, carry out massive military and logistical support for Ukraine, the statement added.
'Where’s the Money for Your Own Population?’: Scholz Mocked Over 18 Bln Euro Ukraine Aid Remarks
A poll conducted by the German think tank INSA in late November indicated that at least 55 percent of Germans dislike Olaf Scholz's work as the chancellor, against 39 percent of those surveyed in March.
Twitter users lashed out at German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s remarks about Europe’s “resolute” reaction to resolving issues related to the EU’s aid to Ukraine and the West’s anti-Russian sanctions.
“Europe is reacting resolutely and powerfully to the current crises: another 18 billion euro for Ukraine, the 9th sanctions package against Russia, new impetus for the EU expansion process and global minimum taxation for large companies. Those are good results,” Scholz tweeted on Thursday.
One user noted that they wonder “where these 18 billion come from”, while another was quick to answer: “from your salary.”
“€18 billion to Ukraine? Are you crazy?”, another netizen tweeted, adding that “almost 10-15 million [German] citizens either already live in poverty or on the poverty line” and that “your ridiculous increase of €50 in citizen income is a mockery when inflation is over 10-15%.”
“18 billion? And where is the money for your own population?”, a separate Twitter message reads, with one more user writing that they feel like they have read about 18 billion euros for Ukraine “42 times now”. “Has something arrived there, or will it remain the same as with the weapons, with the same announcements and delays?”, they tweeted.
One netizen argued that “a wave of resignations in your cabinet would be a good result. Or have you already forgotten the shortcomings of your ministers?”
Another user slammed Scholz for approving 18 billion euro “for a corrupt country”, while one more netizen urged the German Chancellor to “throw the billions out the window, at least that won't cause any damage.”
The netizen was echoed by another user who claimed that “they're already throwing billions out of the window” and that “a government full of failures has managed to ruin Germany within a year”. The remarks come after Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Sputnik on Friday that imposing new sanctions on Russia is the choice of the European Union, but these measures undermine the interests of the member states as well.
“They [EU states] are abandoning market principles — in energy, finance, and in many other areas. This is their choice. But this choice, when implemented in concrete actions, undermines international economic relations in the form, in which they have been formed in recent years, and undermines the economic interests of these countries," Grushko pointed out.
On Thursday, the EU agreed in principle on the ninth package of sanctions against Russia. The final technical procedure for the execution of the sanctions package is expected to be completed on Friday, which will be followed by the restrictive measures coming into force.
In a separate development, EU member states clinched an agreement late last week to unblock an €18 billion package of financial aid to Ukraine for next year, circumventing a veto introduced by Hungary.
Western countries slapped Russia with several new rounds of sanctions in response to the start of the ongoing Russian special military operation in Ukraine on February 24. Since then, these countries have faced surging inflation, as well as electricity and fuel prices, partly prompted by their own sanctions imposed on Moscow.
Ketika kita memikirkan aurora, kita sering membayangkan tirai cahaya yang sempit dan memanjang. Badai luar angkasa juga bersinar terang dalam warna hijau, merah, biru, dan merah muda yang sama.
''Badai antariksa' yang berputar-putar di atas Bumi mengejutkan para ilmuwan'
Tahun lalu, para ilmuwan mengumumkan bahwa mereka telah menemukan aurora mirip siklon di dekat Kutub Utara. Berdiameter lebih dari 600 mil dengan banyak lengan yang berputar berlawanan arah jarum jam, mereka mengandung pusat yang tenang, atau mata, dan elektron "hujan" ke atmosfer bagian atas. Tim menjuluki mereka "badai luar angkasa" karena bentuk corong 3D mereka.
"(Mereka) terjadi di mana tidak ada yang melihat dan terjadi dalam kondisi di mana tidak ada yang mengira sesuatu sedang terjadi," kata Larry Lyons, salah satu penulis studi tentang badai antariksa serta fisikawan antariksa di UCLA: "Ini hanya masalah membuka matamu."
Dalam sebuah studi baru, para peneliti menjelaskan lebih banyak tentang fenomena misterius ini, menunjukkan kapan, di mana, dan bagaimana fenomena itu terjadi dengan detail yang belum pernah terjadi sebelumnya.
Aurora adalah salah satu manifestasi dampak matahari yang paling terlihat di Bumi, karena cahaya lembutnya disebabkan oleh partikel dari molekul menarik matahari di atmosfer bagian atas kita. Identifikasi jenis aurora baru ini menyoroti jalan raya lain yang dapat dilalui oleh partikel matahari dan mentransfer energi dalam jumlah besar ke dalam sistem Bumi — memasuki garis lintang yang lebih tinggi daripada aurora pada umumnya.
"Orang-orang telah mengetahui ada beberapa aurora terang atau beberapa bentuk aurora di wilayah itu sebelumnya, tapi tidak ada yang benar-benar memasukkannya ke dalam gambar yang kohesif ini," kata Lyons. "Ini sangat kuat, dan aurora bisa sangat, sangat terang."
Badai luar angkasa, dengan kata lain, seperti sereal Chocolate Caramel Crunch dari Cap'n Crunch: mirip dengan aslinya tetapi memiliki rasa sendiri. (Juga, Anda mungkin tidak tahu ada sebelum artikel ini.)
Ketika kita berpikir tentang aurora, kita sering membayangkan tirai cahaya yang sempit dan memanjang menari-nari melintasi langit ke arah timur-barat. Badai luar angkasa juga bersinar terang dalam warna hijau, merah, biru, dan merah muda yang sama. Keduanya bergerak dengan kecepatan dan ketinggian yang sama (sekitar 100 hingga 250 kilometer).
Tapi sekarang rasa coklat karamel masuk. Studi ini menemukan aurora siklon ini terbentuk di lintang tinggi dekat Kutub Utara, jauh di atas tempat aurora memanjang terang telah diamati. Mereka dapat berputar selama delapan jam, sedangkan aurora tradisional hanya bertahan beberapa menit. Mereka juga muncul selama periode aktivitas geomagnetik rendah, ketika gangguan di medan magnet bumi oleh partikel matahari diyakini sangat rendah.
Lyons mengatakan orang-orang di darat kemungkinan besar akan melihat badai antariksa jika mereka berada di sekitar 80 derajat lintang utara dekat Kutub Utara. (Santa mungkin akan melihatnya berkali-kali, jika dia nyata.) Astronot mungkin juga dapat melihatnya dari Stasiun Luar Angkasa Internasional, jika mereka diajari di mana dan apa yang harus dicari.
Meskipun kita mungkin tidak dapat melihatnya dengan mudah, kehadiran badai antariksa dirasakan dengan cara lain. Seperti aurora lainnya, mereka telah menginterupsi gelombang radio yang melewati atmosfer bagian atas, memengaruhi komunikasi satelit dan sistem navigasi, kata rekan penulis studi Qing-He Zhang dan Sheng Lu dalam email.
Mereka juga menyebabkan atmosfer bagian atas memanas, yang dapat memengaruhi orbit satelit dan puing-puing ruang angkasa. Tetapi badai tidak menimbulkan risiko luar biasa bagi kesehatan pesawat ruang angkasa atau astronot.
“Dari sudut pandang komunikasi dan navigasi, ini sepertinya akan menjadi sesuatu yang ingin kami tambahkan ke prediksi kami untuk pesawat yang menerbangkan rute kutub,” tulis Zhang, profesor di Institute of Space Science and Physics di China, dalam sebuah pernyataan. surel. "Studi tentang badai luar angkasa baru saja dimulai."
Lyons mengatakan dia menemukan badai luar angkasa secara tidak sengaja. Lyons, Zhang, Lu dan rekan lainnya sedang melihat data satelit untuk proyek yang berbeda tetapi melihat aliran plasma yang luar biasa kuat — atau gas yang sangat panas dan bermuatan energi — di tutup kutub. Tutup kutub adalah wilayah setengah lingkaran di garis lintang tertinggi di Bumi, dekat kutub utara.
Biasanya, peneliti tidak mencari aurora di tutup kutub karena berada di atas oval aurora, yang merupakan sabuk di batas tutup kutub tempat cahaya utara muncul. Ketika masuknya partikel matahari mengganggu medan magnet Bumi, oval aurora bergerak menuju ekuator. Selama badai geomagnetik yang jarang dan kuat, orang kadang-kadang dapat melihat lampu menari sejauh selatan Georgia. Namun secara umum, aurora jauh lebih lemah di wilayah tutup kutub - atau begitulah yang dipikirkan Lyons.
Melihat lebih dekat pada data, dia mulai melihat intensifikasi aurora yang sangat dramatis di tutup kutub yang terkait dengan aliran plasma yang kuat.
“Anda melihatnya lebih dekat dan saya berkata, 'Tunggu sebentar, aliran ini seperti mengambang dalam lingkaran. Dan di tengahnya, ada titik aurora yang sangat besar, aurora yang sangat terang. Wah, ini menarik. Mari kita lihat lebih dekat,” kenang Lyons.
Selama beberapa dekade, para ilmuwan telah melihat sekilas aurora terang di wilayah tutup kutub dan mengetahui aliran plasma melingkar, tetapi belum ada yang menyusun gambaran yang kohesif tentang kejadian tersebut hingga saat ini, kata Lyons. Dalam studi barunya, tim menganalisis lebih dari 300 badai antariksa selama 11 tahun — sekitar 30 pengamatan per tahun, tetapi lebih banyak lagi yang bisa terjadi jika satelit tidak diawasi. Mereka paling sering muncul pada sore hari selama musim panas.
Tapi bagaimana lampu siklon ini terbentuk?
Hujan Elektron
Untuk memahami bagaimana badai luar angkasa terbentuk, pertama-tama mari kita lihat bagaimana aurora tradisional umumnya terbentuk.
Matahari terus-menerus memancarkan aliran partikel bermuatan, yang disebut angin matahari. Terkadang angin matahari bisa diperkuat dengan ledakan di matahari.
Proses aurora dimulai ketika ledakan partikel dan energi dari matahari mengganggu magnetosfer Bumi, yang merupakan perisai magnet tak terlihat yang sebagian besar dibentuk oleh arus listrik di inti Bumi dan melindungi planet kita dari radiasi energi tinggi dan partikel matahari yang merusak. Semburan ini mengubah konfigurasi (seperti bentuk dan arah) beberapa garis medan magnet Bumi.
Beberapa elektron terperangkap di sepanjang garis medan magnet dan dipercepat ke atmosfer bagian atas. Di sini, mereka menabrak dan untuk sementara membangkitkan molekul nitrogen dan oksigen serta melepaskan foton cahaya. Itulah yang kita kenal sebagai aurora borealis, atau cahaya utara.
Demikian pula, badai antariksa disebabkan oleh hujan elektron ke atmosfer dan menarik molekul. Tapi mereka terbentuk di garis lintang di dalam tutup kutub yang lebih tinggi dari tempat aurora tradisional tercipta, kata Lyons.
Ada kemungkinan badai antariksa tidak benar-benar "baru", kata Maria Walach, fisikawan plasma antariksa yang tidak terlibat dalam penelitian ini. Mereka terlihat secara fisik mirip dengan fenomena yang diamati sebelumnya yang disebut aurora siang hari lintang tinggi, katanya, mempertanyakan apakah para ilmuwan melihat penemuan baru sama sekali atau hanya resolusi yang lebih tinggi. Penulis studi mengatakan ini berbeda dari pengamatan sebelumnya dari aurora lintang tinggi di siang hari karena jauh lebih terang, mengandung aliran melingkar yang kuat di ionosfer dan dapat memiliki lengan seperti badai.
Bagaimanapun, Walach, di Universitas Lancaster di Inggris, mengatakan pengamatan baru dapat membantu para ilmuwan membuat laporan yang lebih lengkap tentang kondisi di mana jenis aurora ini terjadi.
So sorry, Hollywood, space hurricanes are not a doomsday scenario, but feel free to make a flick with Ryan Reynolds explaining auroral physics.
Enam pelajar Kota Bogor ditangkap lantaran kedapatan membawa senjata tajam (sajam) dan diduga akan melakukan tawuran.
Kasubsi PID Polresta Bogor Kota, Inspektur Polisi Dua Asep Herdianto mengatakan peristiwa penangkapan ke enam pelajar sendiri terjadi pada hari Rabu malam, 14/12/2022.
“Para pelajar ini diamankan saat berkumpul di Gang Selot. Mereka akan melakukan aksi tawuran dan membawa senjata tajam,” kata Kasubsi PID Polresta Bogor Kota, Inspektur Polisi Dua Asep Herdianto, pada hari Kamis, 15/12/2022.
Menurut dia, ke-enam pelajar ini merupakan pelajar gabungan dari dua sekolah yang ada di Kota Bogor.
Adapun, ditambahkan Inspektur Polisi Dua Asep, untuk keterangan lebih lanjut, ke-enam pelajar ini masih dilakukan penyelidikan lebih lanjut di jajaran Satreskrim Polresta Bogor Kota.
Sebelumnya, sebanyak 10 pelajar di Bogor diamankan aparat kepolisian di Jalan Sukasari 3, Kecamatan Bogor Timur, Kota Bogor pada hari Rabu, 14/12/2022.
Para pelajar ini diamankan karena diduga hendak melakukan tawuran.
Informasi dihimpun, ke-10 pelajar yang berhasil diamankan ini berasal dari tiga sekolah gabungan yang ada di Kota Bogor.
Mulanya, ada warga sekitar yang melaporkan terkait gerombolan pelajar Kota Bogor diduga hendak melakukan tawuran. Kemudian, petugas polisi datang dan langsung mengamankan para pelajar tersebut ke Mako Polsek Bogor Timur.
“Diamankan mencegah hal-hal yang tidak diinginkan. Karena dari hasil interogasi, kami menemukan bukti chat mereka janjian akan melakukan tawuran,” kata Kapolsek Bogor Timur, Komisaris Polisi Syaiful Fajar kepada wartawan, hari Kamis, 15/12/2022.
Menurut Komisaris Polisi Syaiful, meski tidak ada barang bukti senjata tajam (sajam) yang diamankan dari para pelajar ini.
Petugas melakukan pemanggilan terhadap orangtua dari ke-10 pelajar ini untuk diberikan pengertian.
“Para orangtua dari seluruh pelajar tersebut dipanggil, diberikan penjelasan, serta pengertian kepada para siswa tersebut,” ucap dia.
“Selanjutnya pelajar Kota Bogor tersebut membuat pernyataan di depan orangtua serta diserahkan kembali kepada pihak keluarga masing-masing,” tandas Asep.
Officials surveyed damage to homes and businesses in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Wednesday, December 14, after a tornado ripped through the area.
Images posted by the New Orleans Fire Department show the trail of destruction to properties left by the tornado.
Local media reported damage to several neighborhoods in the New Orleans area, and at least one person killed. Credit: New Orleans Fire Department via Storyful
Ice and snow will hammer East Coast states after same deadly storm system proved 'more devastating' than expected in the South
The massive storm system that pulverized homes, killed three people in Louisiana and brought blizzard conditions to northern states will inflict a new wave of brutal weather starting Thursday.
Significant ice and heavy snow will smother parts of the Mid-Atlantic and New England, forecasters said.
Ice storm warnings are in effect for the central Appalachians of western Virginia, eastern West Virginia, the Maryland Panhandle and parts of central and western Pennsylvania -- where up to a quarter inch to a half inch of ice could stack up by Thursday evening.
Miles of Interstate 90 in South Dakota were closed Thursday due to hazardous weather
Already, freezing rain and snow are covering parts of the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic. A quarter inch of ice was reported Thursday morning in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia and Maryland, and about a tenth of an inch had built up in parts of Virginia.
And over the next two days, 6 to 12 inches of snow could pile up from central Pennsylvania northward to upstate New York. Places with higher elevations could get walloped with up to 2 feet of snow.
The intense snowfall will spread into interior New England on Friday, with up to a foot expected there.
The mammoth storm system that plowed across much of the country this week will morph into a nor'easter that will spread ice, snow and rain to the Northeast.
Major cities including New York and Boston will likely get doused with 1 to 2 inches of rain into the weekend from the nor'easter.
Winter weather advisories are in effect for Baltimore, Washington and Philadelphia due to the possibility of freezing rain.
While the East Coast hunkers down, tornado survivors in the South are grappling with colossal damage.
The same storm system now slamming eastern states left a trail of devastation in Gulf Coast states.
At least 50 tornado reports have been made since Tuesday in Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Texas Alabama, Georgia and Oklahoma.
As soon as Trent Theriot heard a tornado was headed his way in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, he ducked inside a small closet.
"A minute or so after that, a strong gust of wind came through the front door ... the tornado came through the front," Theriot told CNN's Nick Valencia. "And all of a sudden, everything just blew up."
'More devastating than initially expected'
The tornado that shredded much of Gretna, Louisiana, on Wednesday may have damaged up to 5,000 structures, the mayor said.
"Unfortunately, now that the sun is up, it is more devastating than initially expected," Mayor Belinda Constant said Thursday.
A tornado blew out a vehicle's windows and damaged or destroyed homes in Gretna, Louisiana.
"There are more houses that will probably have to be condemned or just demolished based on such damage," she said. "It's about a mile-and-a-half stretch that is completely just inundated with destruction."
Despite the devastation in Gretna, only three injuries were reported, the mayor said.
"This is not the place where we normally have tornadoes. So our reality of a safe house is not what it is in other parts of the country. But people survived in bathtubs," she said.
"We're a resilient people, and this is the type of thing that don't choose locations."
From tornadoes in the South to blizzard conditions in the Upper Midwest, more than 130,000 homes, businesses and other electricity customers in the US had no power Thursday morning, according to PowerOutage.us.
Most of those outages -- about 115,000 -- were in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. Ferocious winds from blizzard conditions knocked down power lines in the Upper Midwest, and temperatures in some areas without power plunged to near or below freezing.
Visibility was significantly reduced Thursday on Interstate 94 near Bismarck, North Dakota.
In the South, which was hit by multiple tornadoes, about 10,000 power customers were in the dark Thursday morning. About 9,000 outages were reported in Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia.
A mother and child were killed and found far from their home
At least three deaths in Louisiana have been linked to the storm.
Yoshiko A. Smith, 30, and her 8-year-old son, Nikolus Little, were killed Tuesday when a tornado struck Caddo Parish and destroyed their home, local officials said.
Their bodies were found far from where their house once stood, officials said. Autopsies have been ordered for both, the county coronor said.
A large tornado leaves a trail of destruction as it whirled through Arabi, Louisiana.
In St. Charles Parish, a 56-year-old woman died after a tornado hit her home, the Louisiana Department of Health said Wednesday.
In Texas, a tornado struck Wise County near Paradise and Decatur on Tuesday, officials said. Video showed homes splintered, with roofs ripped off in Decatur.
'All we could hear was glass popping everywhere'
In the Louisiana town of Farmerville, at least 20 people were injured when a tornado struck Union Parish on Tuesday night -- demolishing parts of an apartment complex and a mobile home park, Farmerville police Detective Cade Nolan said.
A tornado caused widespread damage in Union Parish, Louisiana.
Patsy Andrews was home with her children in Farmerville when she heard "rushing wind like a train" outside, she told CNN affiliate KNOE-TV.
"All of a sudden that wind was so heavy, it broke my back door," Andrews said. "The lights went off and all we could hear was glass popping everywhere."
Andrews said she and her daughter hit the floor, crawling into a hallway as glass shattered around them and water leaked through the roof. They ended up hunkering down in their bathroom.
"We just got in the tub and we hugged each other. We just kept praying and I just kept calling on Jesus," Andrews said. Her family survived the storm but was left with a damaged home.
Given the extensive destruction across the state, "I am amazed that we didn't have more loss of life in Louisiana, and I'm very thankful for it," Gov. Jon Bel Edwards said Thursday.
Edwards said alert notifications on cell phones were extremely important in giving people proper warning before storms impacted their areas.
"The warning ... tells you there is a tornado in your area, take shelter immediately," the governor said. "We know that that's saving lives across the state."
But while road crews clear debris and try to restore downed power lines, Edwards urged residents to avoid sightseeing hard-hit areas -- such as Iberia Medical Center in New Iberia, a city reportedly hit by a tornado.
In Arabi, Louisiana, Cindy DeLucca Hernandez thought she could beat the storm while driving home with her 16-year-old son after school. Then she found herself facing a tornado.
Hernandez shared video with CNN that showed a tornado blowing through Arabi, kicking up debris and taking out power lines.
A confirmed tornado struck Arabi, Louisiana, on Wednesday.
"We started seeing debris and we got hit a couple of times by it," Hernandez said. "That's when I put the car in reverse."
Hernandez and her son made it home safely.
But "it was extremely scary," Hernandez said. "I've never ever been through anything like that."
Russia has received an official statement from the Vatican apologizing for Pope Francis' racially-charged remarks against Chechens and Buryats, so the incident is over, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova revealed at a briefing Thursday.
15 DEC, 18:47
"It just so happens that within these hours, we received a letter through diplomatic channels from the Vatican, which contains an official statement on behalf of Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin in connection with the pontiff’s aforementioned statement," the diplomat revealed, "That statement says, in particular, the following: ‘The Vatican Secretariat of State apologizes to the Russian side. The Holy See has the utmost respect for all peoples of Russia, their dignity, faith and culture, as well as for other countries and peoples of the world'."
"The ability to admit one's mistakes is increasingly rare in contemporary international communication. This situation shows that behind the Vatican's calls for dialogue stands the ability to conduct this dialogue and to listen to the interlocutors. I can tell you right now that this approach evokes sincere respect," Zakharova stressed, "We think that this incident is over and we hope that we will continue constructive cooperation with the Vatican".
Earlier, Pope Francis in an interview with US media uttered derogatory remarks about the Chechens and Buryats calling them "the cruelest" of the Russian troops stationed in Ukraine.
Peace agreements with Kiev impossible after massive shelling of Donetsk — DPR head
Further peace talks with Ukraine are impossible after the most intense strike on Donetsk since 2014, inflicted by Ukraine on Thursday, acting DPR head Denis Pushilin said on Russian TV.
"If we talk seriously, then there can be no talk about agreements with Kiev. First, Kiev is not independent. We’ve learned that during the Minsk talks. Second, it also does not seem possible to count on guarantors of agreements, whoever they may be. We’ve seen the recent statement by [German Chancellor Angela] Merkel, who effectively confessed in actions, aimed at non-implementation of the Minsk Agreements. The level of trust for European states is close to zero," he said.
According to Pushilin, the DPR see no objective preconditions to talk about negotiations with the US as well.
"Washington is complacent with both this conflict and the gradual loss of Europe’s economic potential, who gradually stops being the US’ competitor even in theory. So, there is no one to negotiate with, we only have to win [on the battlefield]. There are no other ways to stop this conflict, these shellings, war crimes of the Kiev regime and its accomplices - the Western states," the official noted.
He noted that, if in 2014-2015, only the outskirts of Donetsk were shelled, today, the entire territory of the city is being targeted by massive strikes.
Pushilin also noted that about 1 million people currently live in Donetsk.
"If we count the Donetsk agglomeration, which is also being shelled - Makeyevka, Gorlovka, Yasinovataya - then the approximate population reaches 1.5 million people," the acting head said.
He reiterated that artillery strikes will stop only after Donetsk becomes unreachable for Ukrainian artillery.
"We cannot count on anything else. These are outright war criminals, who will definitely shell and harm civilians, if they can. So only the efforts of our boys, who liberate our land with weapons in their hands, can help stop the shelling of Donetsk," he underscored.
Russian troops wipe out command posts of two Ukrainian army brigades — top brass
Russian forces struck the command posts of two Ukrainian army brigades in the Kharkov Region in the past day during the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Thursday.
"Missile troops and artillery struck the command posts of the Ukrainian army’s 92nd separate mechanized brigade near the community of Petropavlovka and 105th territorial defense brigade in the area of the settlement of Sinkovka in the Kharkov Region, and also 45 Ukrainian artillery units at firing positions, manpower and military hardware in 86 areas," the spokesman said.
Russian forces delivered artillery and heavy flamethrower fire, thwarting an attempt by Ukrainian army units to advance in the Lugansk People’s Republic in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Kupyansk direction, preemptive artillery and heavy flamethrower fire and army aviation strikes thwarted an enemy attempt to attack the Russian troop positions in the area of the settlement of Sofiyevka in the Lugansk People’s Republic," the spokesman said.
Russian forces eliminated enemy manpower and military equipment during the battles, the general said.
"As many as 35 Ukrainian servicemen, a combat armored vehicle and three pickup trucks were destroyed," Konashenkov reported.
Russian army aviation and artillery strikes thwarted a counter-attack by four Ukrainian assault groups in three communities in the Lugansk People’s Republic in the past day, the general said.
"In the Krasny Liman direction, army aviation strikes and artillery fire thwarted an attempt by four assault groups of the Ukrainian army to counter-attack in areas near the settlements of Ploshchanka, Golikovo and Kremennaya in the Lugansk People’s Republic," the spokesman said.
Russian forces eliminated over 40 Ukrainian troops, an infantry fighting vehicle and three armored vehicles in that area in the past 24 hours, the general specified.
Russian forces continued their offensive in the Donetsk area, gaining new advantageous positions in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Donetsk direction, Russian troops continue their offensive operations, as a result of which they have taken new advantageous frontiers and positions. During the last 24-hour period, the enemy made unsuccessful attempts to regain its positions in areas near the settlements of Severnoye and Krasnogorovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic. All the Ukrainian army’s counter-attacks were repelled," the spokesman said.
In the past 24 hours, the enemy’s losses in that area amounted to about 30 soldiers killed and wounded, an armored personnel carrier and two motor vehicles, the general specified.
Russian forces eliminated two Ukrainian subversive/reconnaissance groups near Pavlovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the area of the settlement of Pavlovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, two subversive/reconnaissance groups of the Ukrainian armed forces were eliminated," the spokesman said.
Russian combat aircraft and artillery struck the Ukrainian army’s reserves in the southern Donetsk area in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the southern Donetsk direction, air strikes and artillery fire struck the enemy’s reserves in the area of the settlement of Dobrovolye in the Donetsk People’s Republic," the spokesman said.
The Ukrainian army’s casualties in that area in the past 24 hours amounted to 40 troops killed and wounded and four destroyed motor vehicles, the general specified.
Russian forces wiped out a US-made AN/TPQ-37 counter-battery radar of the Ukrainian army in the Donetsk People’s Republic in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the area of the settlement of Kleshcheyevka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, an AN/TPQ-37 counter-battery radar of US manufacture was destroyed," the spokesman said.
In addition, in the area of Kupyansk in the Kharkov Region, Russian forces wiped out an ammunition depot of the Ukrainian army. In the area of the community of Tyaguinka in the Kherson Region, they obliterated a depot of the Ukrainian army’s armaments, military and special hardware. In the town of Orekhov in the Zaporozhye Region, they destroyed a depot of the Ukrainian army’s supplies and equipment, the general specified.
The Russian Aerospace Forces shot down a MiG-29 fighter jet and a Mi-8 helicopter of the Ukrainian Air Force in the Donetsk People’s Republic in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"Fighter aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces shot down a MiG-29 plane of the Ukrainian Air Force in the area of the settlement of Yablonovka. In the area of the community of Nikolayevka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter was shot down," the spokesman said.
Russian air defense forces destroyed 11 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles and two Uragan rockets in the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the past 24 hours, air defense capabilities destroyed 11 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in areas near the settlements of Stepnoye, Novoandreyevka, Volnoye and Nikolskoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic, Sadovoye and Semyonovka in the Zaporozhye Region," the spokesman said.
In addition, they intercepted two rockets of the Ukrainian Uragan multiple launch rocket system in the area of the settlement of Novogorovka in the Zaporozhye Region, he added.
In all, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 344 Ukrainian warplanes, 184 helicopters, 2,669 unmanned aerial vehicles, 396 surface-to-air missile systems, 7,127 tanks and other combat armored vehicles, 931 multiple rocket launchers, 3,685 field artillery guns and mortars and 7,614 special military motor vehicles since the beginning of the special military operation in Ukraine, Konashenkov reported.
