Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Gerasimov summed up the work of the Ministry of Defense in 2023
MOSCOW, December 21/ Sputnik Radio. The Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation – the first Deputy Minister of Defense, Army General Valery Gerasimov, held a briefing for foreign military attaches, at which he summed up the activities of the Russian Defense Ministry in 2023.
About the plans of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
"The enemy's plan was to block Melitopol by the end of 15 days of the offensive. Subsequently, they will advance with access to the coast of the Sea of Azov, the city of Mariupol and the border with Crimea. To achieve this goal, by the beginning of June, the enemy had concentrated an offensive group of up to 50 battalions, more than 230 tanks and over a thousand armored combat vehicles in the Zaporozhye direction, half of which were modern foreign-made models. Subsequently, the group was increased to 80 battalions," Gerasimov said.
In order to disrupt the plans of the Ukrainian command, according to him, the Russian army carried out "large-scale measures to create a layered system of engineering barriers, defensive lines and positions."
About the losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
"In six months, the enemy's losses in all directions amounted to about 160 thousand people, more than 3 thousand armored combat vehicles, including 766 tanks, as well as 121 aircraft, 23 helicopters," Gerasimov said.
About the AFU counteroffensive
"Having launched their offensive on June 4, the AFU, at the cost of colossal losses, were able to slightly advance in the Zaporozhye direction, unable to overcome even the tactical defense zone of our troops," he noted.
According to him, additional supplies of Western weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the commissioning of strategic reserves by the Ukrainian command did not change the situation on the battlefield.
"Thus, the counteroffensive widely advertised by Ukraine and its NATO allies failed," the deputy minister stated.
About the main task of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in its military in 2023
"This year, the main task was to repel the counteroffensive of the AFU strike group, the backbone of which consisted of brigades trained and equipped by Western countries," Gerasimov stressed.
About the work of aviation and air defense in the area of its
"Operational-tactical and army aviation make a great contribution to solving the tasks of the Combined Group of Forces. It is used around the clock, in simple and difficult weather conditions, to search for and destroy enemy forces and assets, as well as to perform reconnaissance and combat missions. Thousands of combat sorties have been carried out by planes and helicopters since the beginning of its operation," the general noted.
In addition, air defense forces are effectively operating in the zone of a special military operation.
"This year, they have destroyed over 6,300 enemy air targets, including more than 4,600 unmanned aerial vehicles, more than 100 guided aviation missiles Storm Shadow, up to 90 anti-radar missiles Harm, as well as 30 missiles of operational tactical complexes Tochka-U and more than 1,400 MLRS shells," – he added.
On the use of high-precision weapons in the area of its
"In order to achieve the goals of a special military operation, high-precision long-range weapons defeat the control points of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces, defense enterprises and critically important military facilities. In total, about 1.5 thousand objects were hit. One of the results of the use of high-precision weapons was a significant decrease in the production of products of the military–industrial complex of Ukraine," he said.
About the work of drones
"The use of unmanned aerial vehicles of various classes and purposes has become an integral part of the fighting. With the help of drones, aerial reconnaissance is conducted around the clock to the full depth of the formation of enemy troops, the coordinates of detected targets are provided and objective control of their destruction is ensured. Tasks are being carried out to destroy military infrastructure facilities and the entire range of weapons and military equipment," Gerasimov said.
About the criminal actions of the Kiev regime
"The Kiev regime, seeing the inability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to achieve its goals on the battlefield, continues to use terrorist methods of struggle, which are carried out with the tacit consent, and often with the support of Western special services. Since the beginning of the special operation, thousands of violations of international humanitarian law have been recorded... More than 4,700 (4,755) civilians, including 140 children, have been killed on the territory of the Donetsk People's Republic alone since February 2022. More than 5,000 people were injured," the deputy minister said.
On the attacks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on nuclear facilities
"Ukraine does not abandon attempts to commit acts of nuclear terrorism, systematically sends unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with explosive devices to the Zaporizhia NPP and the city of Energodar. In May of this year, an attempt by Ukrainian saboteurs to undermine the power lines of the Leningrad and Kalinin nuclear power plants was thwarted," Gerasimov said.
On increasing the composition and strength of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
"In accordance with the decision of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, a phased increase in the composition and strength of the Armed Forces has continued, their staffing has been increased to 1 million 320 thousand military personnel. Two combined arms armies and fourteen formations of military branches and types of support have been formed in the Ground Forces. To increase the capabilities of the aerospace defense system of the Russian Federation, three formations of the Aerospace Forces have been formed," the general said.
In addition, he added, the Navy has accepted four submarines and eight surface ships of various classes.
On the priority of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in 2024
"Military cooperation with the armies of foreign countries remains one of the priorities. It is planned to conduct an active military delegation exchange and joint operational and combat training events with the defense departments of friendly countries. We count on the active participation of military attaches in maintaining constructive cooperation," Gerasimov said.
Sputnik Radio reported that Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu named the number of contractors who joined the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
