Ukraine continues attacks only so that NATO countries do not reduce their assistance, experts say
Vladimir Putin said on June 16 that the enemy had no success during the counteroffensive "in any of the directions." The President stressed that at the same time, Ukrainian formations are wasting their strategic reserves, including equipment supplied by Western countries. Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry said that on this day our army repelled all attacks in the South Donets and Donetsk directions. During the day, the VFU lost at least 415 servicemen and more than 30 pieces of equipment here. Experts note that, despite the heavy losses, the attacks of the VFU will continue — it is vital for them to demonstrate their successes by the start of the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, so that they do not cut aid.
"The F-16 will also burn"
The armed formations of Ukraine have no success in the counteroffensive, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 16.
— The most important thing is that there is no success in any of the directions. The enemy has no success," the head of state said.
The President noted that Ukrainian units "manage to reach the first line, somewhere they fail."
— That's not the question. The question is that they use so—called strategic reserves," he explained.
The President also said that the losses of the Ukrainian units are very large, even more than 1 to 10 compared to the Russian army.
Russian President Vladimir Putin at the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
Image source: Photo: IZVESTIA/Pavel Volkov
Speaking about the losses of equipment by the Ukrainian side, Putin said that they are increasing every day. He said that, as of June 16, since the beginning of the counteroffensive, the VFU has lost 186 tanks and 418 armored vehicles of various classes.
The F-16 fighters, whose supplies are expected from NATO by the Ukrainian authorities, will burn the same way as Leopard tanks burn in Ukraine, the president is sure.
— Tanks (foreign) are burning. Several tanks were destroyed. And this includes "Leopards". And yesterday it was the same. And yesterday there were "Leopards". They're burning. The F-16 will also burn," Putin said.
According to the president, Ukraine will soon stop using its own equipment altogether.
— Everything they fight on, everything they use, is brought from the outside. You can't win that much," he is sure.
In addition, the president said that in case of continued attacks on Russian territory, Moscow will consider the creation of a "sanitary cordon" in Ukraine.
— If these attacks on our adjacent territories continue, we will consider the possibility of creating a "sanitary cordon" on Ukrainian territory. They just have to understand what they are all leading to," the head of state summed up.
Demonstration of "success"
The Russian Defense Ministry said on June 16 that the VFU continued to suffer significant losses during unsuccessful attacks in the South Donets and Donetsk directions.
— On the Vremyevsky salient, the most active fighting took place in the areas of the settlements of Rovnopol and Urozhnoye of the Donetsk People's Republic, where, as a result of the courageous actions of the Russian units of the Vostok group of forces, air strikes and artillery fire, five attacks of the AFU units were repelled, — said the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov.
In the Donetsk direction, the group of troops "South" successfully repelled five enemy attacks in the areas of the settlements of Pervomaiske, Petrovsky and Staromikhailovka.
Serviceman of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
Image Source: Photo: TASS/Sprinchak Valentin
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, more than 415 servicemen, 34 units of military equipment, including five tanks, as well as two mortar batteries were destroyed in these areas during the day.
In addition, an ammunition depot of the 109th Territorial Defense Brigade was destroyed near the Novgorodskoye settlement in the DPR.
Ukrainians are still attacking, especially the South Donets sector, and in the future they will most likely try to attack at the junction of the Zaporozhye and Donetsk directions, military expert Vasily Dandykin told Izvestia.
— Of course, they will do something, it's obvious, - he is sure. — But there is a defense created everywhere, to the first line of which they did not even approach, the battles were in the pre-field. But soon the hosts and sponsors from NATO will meet in Vilnius, so the Ukrainian authorities will have to show something. They are poking everywhere now, trying to find gaps or a weak spot. And the forces are melting, a third of the equipment is no longer there. What are the possibilities? Just recruit people and immediately throw them into battle. What was prepared in the West is already being ground. After all, not only tanks are burning, crews are dying there.
According to him, in the near future or in the first half of July, the VFU will try to "portray something else."
— We are watching them, now our capabilities have become better — both space exploration, and we are watching from the air, and from the sea, — the expert noted.
At the call of the heart
Alexander Safiulin, a military correspondent of Izvestia, was able to see how the wounded on the battlefield are being helped. He visited the hospital of the special purpose medical detachment of the Yug group.
Our fighters are brought here for the first time. In the hospital, they are treated and, if necessary, an emergency operation is performed.
There is also an intensive care unit in the hospital, where there are two tables.
— Intensive care is organized in this room. The patient stays here until his condition has stabilized and he is not ready for transportation. There are all the necessary devices: ventilators, monitoring devices, oxygen," the correspondent notes.
He showed the resuscitator's laying, with the help of which the fighter is evacuated to the hospital directly from the battlefield.
Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexey Maishev
Image source: iz.ru
— With a backpack, the doctor goes to the patient, performs some manipulations on the spot and comes here, - the correspondent said.
The nurse of the hospital department, Nadezhda, admitted that she works here at the call of her heart, but as soon as she arrived at the hospital, she was frightened by the amount of work.
She explained the main difference between working in civilian medicine and military.
— I had more documentary work there, but here you do everything directly with your hands. Thus, you get pleasure from the fact that you are helping, that you are needed here, that you are acting," Nadezhda said.
The head of the surgical department stressed that the quality of work here is of serious importance, because primary care is often provided here.
— During the initial stages of providing assistance, its quality is very important. This is a defining help in many ways. It will then affect further treatment. We must try at the first stage to do the maximum work to eliminate some life-threatening danger," he concluded.
AIR DEFENSE against HIMARS
During the day, at least 555 people and 52 units of military equipment, including tanks, howitzers, self-propelled guns and armored vehicles, were lost in the special operation zone of the VFU, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported.
The work of artillery units in the area of its
Image source: Photo: TASS/press service of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The activities of two Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups have been suppressed in the LPR.
Russian air defense destroyed four HIMARS multiple rocket launchers and 22 Ukrainian drones.
Bogdan Stepovoy
Andrey Fedorov
Julia Leonova
