Russia has lost up to 5,000 men in battles for a single district in Tjasiv Yar.
This is stated by Ukrainian military spokesman Nazar Voloshyn on Ukrainian television.
– You don’t care that you lose your own soldiers as long as they move forward and grind down the Ukrainians. Then the result will be big losses, says Joakim Paasikivi to TV4 Nyheterna.
The information about the losses in Tjasiv Yar comes after Ukraine confirmed on Thursday that the country’s forces had withdrawn from parts of the strategically important city in eastern Ukraine.
The former lieutenant colonel Joakim Paasikivi is, despite the high death toll, not surprised.
– You don’t care that you lose your own soldiers as long as they move forward and grind down the Ukrainians. Then the result will be big losses, says Joakim Paasikivi to TV4 Nyheterna.
Can open for advancement
He likens the fighting to those seen earlier in the towns of Backmut and Avdijivka.
– You grind down Ukraine by firing artillery, and then you push forward Russian soldiers, says Paasikivi.
Fighting around Tjasiv Jar near Bachmut has raged since February, when Russia shifted focus after capturing Avdijivka. If the Russians succeed in capturing Tjasiv Jar as well, it is considered open for further advancement in the Donetsk region, the newspaper writes Kyiv Independent.
Tjasiv Jar is on the way into Donetsk’s core. There is a large road that leads to Kramatorsk and Slovjansk, among other things.
Recruits and loses as many
Russia has claimed Donetsk since 2014, but does not yet control the entire region.
– They really want to take this county. It is an important direction for Russia, says Joakim Paasikivi.
According to Paasikivi, the risk is high that battles like those in Tjasiv Jar will continue, at worst for a couple of years.
– Russia’s recruitment of soldiers seems to be about as large as the losses. So there is no indication that you cannot continue, but it depends on long-term things such as combat material, combat vehicle production, rearmament and industry.