Two Russian military officials were killed on the Ukrainian front on Sunday 14 May, according to Moscow. This type of communication, which is rare with the Russian army, comes at a time when the latter is stalling in the town of Bakhmut.
Russia said Sunday that two of its military commanders had been killed in combat near the frontline hotspot of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.
In a rare announcement of its losses on the battlefield, the Russian defence ministry said the commander of the 4th motorised rifle brigade, Vyacheslav Makarov, and the deputy commander of the Army Corps for military-political work, Yevgeny Brovko, had been killed in fighting in eastern Ukraine.
The announcement came as battles raged for control of Bakhmut in the eastern region of Donetsk.
Referring to the mercenary group Wagner, Moscow said that “assault detachments” have continued to fight for control of western parts of Bakhmut with the support of airborne forces.
Russia has kept a tight lid on its losses in Ukraine.
Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said last year that 5,937 Russian troops had been killed in the pro-Western country even though military analysts say Moscow has sought to hide the scale of its losses in Ukraine.
Malo Pinatel, with AFP