Russia's rare announcement of battlefield losses: Two commanders killed in Ukraine's Bakhmut

In a rare announcement of its losses on the battlefield, Russia on Sunday saidthat two of its military commanders had been killed in combat near the frontline hotspot of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.The nation also disclosedthat itsforces havestruck Western arm depots and Ukrainian troops in the westerncity of Ternopil and the eastern town of Petropavlivka, reports AFP.

As per a Russian defence ministry statement publishedby the nation's news agencies, Russia's armed forces "delivered a strike with high-precision long-range air and sea-based weapons at the points of deployment of the Ukrainian armed forces."

"Places of storage of ammunition, weapons and military equipment received from Western countries," were also struck, it said.

Battlefield losses

The Russian defence ministry in a statement announced that Vyacheslav Makarov, the commander of the 4th motorised rifle brigade, and Yevgeny Brovko, deputy commander of the Army Corps for military-political work, had been killed in fighting in eastern Ukraine.

The military commanders were reportedly killed during clashes for control of Bakhmut in eastern Donetsk. The first, Colonel Makarov, died while his brigade was warding off attacks from Ukrainian troops in the south of Krasne. As the third attack was being repelled, he was seriously wounded and died while being evacuated from the battlefield.

"Two attacks of the enemy have been repelled," said the Russian ministry in a statement.

"As a third attack was being repelled, the brigade commander was seriously wounded and died during the evacuation from the battlefield."

The second commander, Brovko, died while repelling attacks by Ukrainian troops elsewhere. The ministry stated that he "died heroically, having received multiple shrapnel wounds"

Moscow also said that "assault detachments" — which, as per AFP, was a reference to the Wagner mercenary group — with the help of airborne forces, continued to fight for control of the western regions of Bakhmut.

The ministry said that all attacks by Ukrainian forces have been repelled. Referring to Bakhmut by its Russian name, it said: "Over the past day the enemy has made massive attempts to break through the defence of our troops to the north and south of Artemovsk."

Russia has remained tight-lipped about its losses in the ongoing Ukraine war. Last year, the nation's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, in an equally rare announcement, stated that 5,937 Russian soldiers had been killed in Ukraine. However, analysts claim that the actual figures are higher than those reported by Moscow.

(With inputs from agencies)

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