There are no losses among the Russian Armed Forces during the special operation to protect the population of Donbass. This was announced on Friday, February 25, by the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Major General Igor Konashenkov.
"On February 24, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation conducted a successful landing operation near the Gostomel airfield in the suburbs of Kiev. More than 200 Russian helicopters were involved in the operation. There are no losses in the Russian Armed Forces," he said.
Konashenkov also noted that during the seizure of the airfield, more than 200 nationalists from the special units of Ukraine were destroyed.
The Major General clarified that the success of the landing was ensured by the suppression of the entire air defense system in the landing area, the complete isolation of the combat area from the air and the active conduct of electronic warfare.
A day earlier, Konashenkov said that the success of the operation to protect Donbass was made possible largely thanks to the coordinated fire support of domestic artillery and aviation.
As a result, on February 24, Russian troops managed to disable 83 ground objects of the military infrastructure of Ukraine, as well as shoot down two Su-27, two Su-24, one helicopter and four Bayraktar TB-2 attack unmanned aerial vehicles of the Armed forces of Ukraine.
On the morning of February 24, Russian Leader Vladimir Putin said in his special televised address that a special operation would be carried out in Donbass to protect civilians.
On February 21, Putin signed decrees recognizing the independence of the Luhansk and Donetsk People's Republics (LPR and DPR). Also, the President of the Russian Federation and the heads of both republics Leonid Pasechnik and Denis Pushilin signed treaties on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance, which were ratified by the republics themselves and Moscow the next day.
The situation in Donbass escalated on February 17. The DPR and LPR reported intense shelling by Ukrainian security forces, including from heavy weapons. The republics announced a general mobilization and evacuation of civilians to the territory of Russia.
Since 2014, the Kiev authorities have been conducting a military operation against the residents of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup and the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kiev blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the conflict.
