Ministry of Defence: Russian Defences repel Ukrainian Forces' Joint Attack

Russian Defence Ministry spokeswoman speaking to Sputnik has said that Russian forces have destroyed two Ukrainian reconnaissance groups and repulsed a joint attack by multiple launch rocket systems of Ukrainian troops in the south of Donetsk. The Russian Defence Ministry reports that three Ukrainian drones were also brought down by Russian forces.

"In the south Donetsk direction, combined missile strikes involving two rockets of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system [MLRS] and three projectiles of the Smerch MLRS were repelled. The crews of the S-300 and Buk anti-aircraft missile systems destroyed all targets," the spokesperson said.

"Up to 20 militants were eliminated," says Russian spokesperson

Russian forces have prevented "two attempts by the enemy to carry out reconnaissance by force," in the south of Donetsk, according to a spokesperson for the defence ministry. "A reconnaissance group was annihilated, and up to 20 militants were eliminated," the spokesperson added.

Also, the spokesperson added that five terrorists were killed when Ukrainian forces tried to dispatch a sabotage and reconnaissance detachment to the back of Russian troops in the Zaporizhzhia direction.

Western nations have launched a broad campaign of sanctions on Moscow in response to Russia's operation and have started supporting Ukraine with arms. Following referendums that revealed a resounding majority of the local populace supported becoming a part of Russia, agreements on the accession of these territories to Russia were signed on September 30, 2022, by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, as well as Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions.

Western nations have dramatically expanded their financial and military aid to Kyiv, which now also includes armoured vehicles, anti-aircraft weapons, tanks, self-propelled artillery, multiple rocket launchers, and other types of ammunition. The supply of armaments to Ukraine by Western nations, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, is evidence of their direct and expanding involvement in the crisis.