One of the deadliest strikes by the Armed Forces of Ukraine against the occupying positions in Makiivka is an embarrassment to Russian President Vladimir Putin and one of the biggest losses of the Russian Federation in a single episode of the war. 

This is stated in an article by The New York Times.

The authors of the materials draw attention to the unusual statement of the Russian Ministry of Defense about "63 dead" during the attack in Makiivka.

After all, the aggressor country usually does not recognize its serious losses at the front. 

However, as the article states, neither Russia's claims about the number of casualties nor Ukraine's claims about the liquidation of about 400 occupiers "cannot be independently verified."

However, it is emphasized that "even the smallest number would be

," who has repeatedly promised to correct flagrant mistakes and shortcomings in the army.

The article also reports that Russian propaganda bloggers and some officials

.

After all, it was they who gave the order to place the invaders in one place within the reach of the artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and also near the ammunition depot.

Russian mass propaganda media also wrote that the "active use of mobile phones by newly arrived servicemen" was the main reason for the attack, which helped Ukrainian forces pinpoint their location.

Moreover, the leader of the pro-Kremlin party "Just Russia" in the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Serhiy Mironov, called for bringing to criminal responsibility all the culprits, "whether they are in uniform or not."

The publication also cites the statements of the Russian terrorist Igor Girkin.

He reported that the technical training center in Makiivka (where the occupiers were located) was almost completely destroyed due to the detonation of ammunition, along with all the military equipment that

.

Dara Massicot, a senior researcher at the RAND Corporation, noted that Russian officials "usually do not provide this kind of information after a major defeat, which indicates that they want to control the narrative about this event."

What is known about the destruction of the occupiers in Makiivka

The Armed Forces of Ukraine, using HIMARS systems, on the night of January 1 destroyed the building of the former vocational school in occupied Makiivka, where the Russian military was stationed.

Most of them were mobilized fighters.

According to the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, 63 of them were eliminated during the attack on the occupiers.

However, according to Ukrainian military experts, about 400 invaders could have died there.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not specify the exact number of enemy casualties, but reported the destruction and damage of up to 10 units of military equipment of various types.

According to the military analyst Oleksiy Hetman, the military leadership of the occupiers made a mistake by concentrating a large number of mobilized people, along with military equipment and ammunition, in the converted PTU dormitory in Makiivka.

Now the Russian Ministry of Defense is trying to blame the officials of the so-called "DNR" and the "Mobics" themselves for the destruction of hundreds of occupiers.

Read also:

• Ukraine news

• War in Ukraine

• News of Ukraine: video

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