Putin: The Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 245 tanks and 678 armored vehicles since the beginning of the AFU counteroffensive
As of the night of June 21, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have lost 245 tanks and 678 armored vehicles since the beginning of the counteroffensive. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 21 after a meeting with graduates of military universities, answering a question from journalist Pavel Zarubin about the situation on the contact line.
According to the head of state, now the Russian forces are observing a lull in the Ukrainian counteroffensive due to the huge losses of personnel and equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Among the lost military equipment, as Putin clarified, there are also German-made Leopard tanks, French equipment and American armored vehicles.
The Russian leader suggested that at the moment the Ukrainian troops are engaged in combining new units from the brigades that have suffered heavy losses and are engaged in restoring combat capability.
"So far, no active offensive actions are being carried out <...>. At the same time, today we see that the offensive potential has not yet been exhausted, there are also reserves," Putin said.
In addition, the President noted the courage and heroism of Russian fighters, as well as the readiness of commanders to repel any aggressive actions against Russia, thanks to which the enemy realizes that "he has no chance."
Earlier, on June 13, Putin said at a meeting with military commanders that the Ukrainian counteroffensive using reserves began on June 4 and continues to this day. At the same time, according to him, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have not achieved success in any direction, and Kiev's losses in personnel are approaching catastrophic.
In the closed part of communication with military officers, the president noted that his words about the heavy losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the counteroffensive are confirmed in Ukraine "among themselves in conversations."
Later, on June 16, during a speech at SPIEF-2023, Putin also pointed out the significant losses of Ukrainian troops and added that Ukraine had already lost 186 tanks and 418 armored vehicles since the beginning of the counteroffensive.
The special operation to protect Donbass, which Vladimir Putin announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was made against the background of the aggravation of the situation in the region.