DONETSK, January 23. /TASS/. Ukraine’s troops lost 752 servicemen, spokesman for the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Eduard Basurin, said on Friday.
“The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue the offensive in the areas adjacent to the airport, near Peski and Mariupol,” Basurin said. “Militias repulse the attacks by Ukrainian troops,” he said.
“These operations by the Armed Forces of Ukraine are chaotic due to the absence of interaction of units,” Basurin said.
Ukrainian security forces suffered considerable losses, he added.
Since the beginning of the operation, 752 Ukrainian servicemen have died. Fifty-nine tanks, 51 infantry combat vehicles and armored vehicles have been destroyed. According to prisoners of war and radio intercept, the Ukrainian command used all existing forces to storm the airport, the Donetsk republic’s ministry said.
The Minsk Memorandum (on Ukrainian settlement) will no longer be considered in the form it was initially adopted, Basurin also said.
“The Minsk Memorandum will not be considered in the form it was adopted,” he told the Donetsk News Agency. “But it doesn’t mean there will be no other types of talks, since we all need peace — both us, who are living here, and citizens of Ukraine.”