Russia has claimed that it has killed 150 Ukrainian soldiers in “high-precision strikes,” downed a Ukrainian fighter jet and taken out “foreign mercenaries.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) made the claims in a briefing given by Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov, the chief spokesman for the MoD, on Tuesday, July 5.
The Russian MoD released a statement in English, claiming: “The Russian Armed Forces continue strikes against military facilities in Ukraine.
“High-precision weapons of the Russian Aerospace Forces have eliminated up to 150 Ukrainian servicemen and 12 pieces of military equipment of the 93rd mechanized brigade of AFU [the Ukrainian Armed Forces] in Kharkov.
“In addition, high-precision weapons have hit 2 command posts near Zvanovka and Ivano-Dar’ivka in Donetsk People’s Republic, 4 depots of ammunition and missile-artillery weapons near Krasnoye in Kharkov Region, as well as manpower and military equipment of AFU in 18 areas, including a temporary deployment point of foreign mercenaries near Liman in Nikolaev Region.
“Within the counter-battery fighting, 4 Ukrainian artillery platoons of Uragan and Grad multiple-launch rocket systems near Gorlovka, Donetsk People’s Republic, and 1 artillery platoon of Hyacinth-B howitzers near Kirovo, Kherson region, have been neutralized.
“Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery have hit: 3 AFU command posts, 2 ammunition and missile-artillery weapons depots near Bashtanka in Nikolaev Region and Sidorovo in Donetsk People’s Republic, 1 radar station of the S-300 missile system near Shirokolanovka in Nikolaev Region, and AFU manpower and military equipment in 63 areas.
“1 Su-25 aircraft of the Ukrainian air force has been shot down by a Russian fighter jet near Novobratskoye, Kherson Region.
“Russian air defense means have shot down 3 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles near Chernobaevka, Kherson Region, Kun’e, Kharkov Region, and Aleksandropolye, Lugansk People’s Republic, 3 Tochka-U tactical missiles near Chernobaevka, Kherson Region, and Pervomaisk, Lugansk People’s Republic, and 8 MLRS shells near Leskovki and Dolgenkoe, Kharkov Region.
“In total, 231 Ukrainian airplanes and 134 helicopters, 1,451 unmanned aerial vehicles, 353 anti-aircraft missile systems, 3,910 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 716 multiple launch rocket systems, 3,092 field artillery and mortars, as well as 4,016 units of special military vehicles were destroyed during the operation.”
We have not been able to independently verify the claims or the footage.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 in what the Kremlin insists on calling a “special military operation.” July 5 marks the 132nd day of the invasion.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between February 24 and July 5, Russia had lost about 36,350 personnel, 1,594 tanks, 3,772 armored combat vehicles, 806 artillery units, 247 multiple launch rocket systems, 105 air defense systems, 217 warplanes, 187 helicopters, 660 drones, 144 cruise missiles, 15 warships, 2,634 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 65 units of special equipment.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is pushing his advantage after his forces captured the Ukrainian city of Lysychansk, in the eastern Luhansk Oblast region, ordering Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to continue the offensive.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that his country’s forces would retake the city “thanks to the increase in the supply of modern weapons.”
Luhansk’s regional governor Serhiy Haidai said that Ukraine’s troops have now moved to new fortified positions. He pleaded for more weapons from Ukraine’s allies to help fight Russia’s current advantage.
The Governor of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast region in central-eastern Ukraine, Valentyn Reznichenko, has said that Russian forces targeted the region with seven missiles overnight July 4-5, with Ukrainian forces downing six of them. The seventh missile hit a residential area and damaged homes, with no reports of casualties so far.
The strategically situated Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, which has Dnipro as its capital, borders the Kharkiv Oblast to the north, the Donetsk Oblast to the east, the Kherson Oblast to the south and the Mykolaiv Oblast to the west.
President Zelensky is negotiating with Turkey and the UN in a bid to secure guarantees for his country’s grain exports. The move comes after Turkish authorities detained a Russian cargo ship carrying grain allegedly stolen from Ukraine. The ship is said to contain over 7,000 tons of grain that Russian officials said would be sent to “friendly” countries.
He has said that third parties other than Russia are needed to guarantee that grain can be safely exported. It is believed that 22 million tons of grain are stuck in Ukraine due to Russia’s naval blockade of the country’s Black Sea ports.
NATO has said that Finland and Sweden completed accession talks at NATO Headquarters in Brussels on Monday, July 4. NATO said: “Both countries formally confirmed their willingness and ability to meet the political, legal and military obligations and commitments of NATO membership.”
NATO has appointed U.S. Army General Christopher G. Cavoli as its new Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. He speaks Russian and has a master’s degree from Yale in Russian studies.
The leaders of dozens of countries, as well as international organizations and companies gathered in Lugano, in Switzerland, for a Ukraine Recovery Conference to elaborate a “Marshall Plan” roadmap to rebuild the country after the war.
Ukrainian President Zelensky said in a virtual address that Russia’s war “is not just an attempt to seize our land and destroy our state, but also a worldview confrontation.”
He also said that rebuilding Ukraine provides the opportunity “to show why freedom is mightier than tyranny.”
