Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar claimed on Monday that roughly 5,300 Russian troops have been killed since the Russian assault began on February 24. …
Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar claimed on Monday that roughly 5,300 Russian troops have been killed since the Russian assault began on February 24. Ukraine’s state Ukrinform news service translated Maliar’s Facebook post claiming the high number of Russian casualties, plus Russia’s loss of 29 combat aircraft,29 helicopters,191 tanks,816 armored fighting vehicles, and 74 artillery pieces, among other equipment captured or destroyed. Maliar conceded these estimates were “approximate” and difficult to verify while combat is still ongoing. She said her ministry is receiving data from the battlefield “the next day,” and sometimes a day later. Armed Forces Ukraine made a similar claim of casualties and equipment destroyed on Twitter, presumably relying on the same data as the deputy defense minister. Kharkiv Mayor Oleh Sinegubov claimed on Sunday night that Ukrainian forces repelled a major offensive and completely wiped out the invading force, capturing dozens of Russian troops and their equipment. “Control of Kharkiv is completely ours” after Ukrainian forces completed “a full clearing of the city of the enemy,” said Sinegubov. The Russian military made its first admission of casualties on Sunday, although it did not offer any numbers of dead and wounded, or an inventory of equipment captured or destroyed by the Ukrainians. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj.
