Ukrainian officials claimed on Saturday morning that Russia had lost around 3,500 men in the first two days of the war between the two nations.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced on Facebook that according to its estimates, Russia had lost 14 aircraft, eight helicopters, 102 tanks and 536 light armoured vehicles.
Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser in the Volodymyr Zelensky government, was quoted by Ukrainian media outlets as saying 3,500 Russian troops had been killed in the fighting and around 200 had been taken prisoner.
Russia is yet to acknowledge a single combat loss in the Ukraine operation.
The Ukrainian General Staff said Russia “started relocation of reserve units in the border with Ukraine regions and continues aviation strikes at airports, grouping forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in eastern Ukraine and in the northern part of Kyiv region”.
The General Staff alleged Russia had conducted airstrikes in Odessa and on civilian infrastructure in Kyiv.
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Giving an update of the operations on Saturday morning on national TV, Podoliak said the Ukrainian forces had repulsed Russian attempts to enter Kyiv overnight. “… if the Armed Forces worked on the outskirts of the city, the defence forces worked absolutely effectively in the city. People are protecting their homes. This is something that analysts at the Russian General Staff did not expect,” Podoliak was quoted as saying by Interfax.
He alleged the government had thwarted Russian attempts at sabotage operations in Kyiv.
