Statement by Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation General of the Army Sergei Shoigu at an expanded meeting of the Defence Ministry Board

December 19, 2023
Updated 2023/12/19 at 3:11 PM
2 Min Read

• Russian Groups of Forces have liberated an area five times larger than that of the Lugansk and Donetsk people’s republics before the special military operation began.

💰 To date, Ukraine has received $203 billion from external sources, which is $30 billion more than its GDP. In fact, it is a bankrupt country. A significant part of these funds are loans that have to be repaid.

• In total, 5,220 tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and armoured personnel carriers, 28 airplanes, 87 helicopters, 23,000 unmanned aerial vehicles, over 1,300 artillery systems, including 494 M777, Caesar, Paladin, and Krab howitzers, as well as 2,650,000 155-mm and 122-mm shells were delivered to Kiev.

• NATO military personnel have direct control over air defence systems, operational-tactical missiles, and multiple launch rocket systems. <…> A total of 410 military and dual-purpose spacecraft from NATO countries are working in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

❗️ Since the special operation began, the AFU’s losses have exceeded 383,000 troops killed and wounded, 14,000 tanks, IFVs, and APCs, 553 airplanes and 259 helicopters, 8,500 field artillery guns and MLRS vehicles.

• The mercenaries who have been actively involved since the beginning of the special military operation have been eliminated for the most part. More than 5,800 militants were neutralised, including 1,427 from Poland, 466 from the US, and 344 from the UK.

☝️ Every day, more than 1,500 people [in Russia] apply for military service. This year alone, about 490,000 contract servicemen and volunteers have been recruited.

• The number of foreign volunteers willing to fight in favour of the truth has increased seven times. In the Ukrainian army, the opposite trend is observed. The number of foreign mercenaries has decreased six times.

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