Russia cripples 83 Ukrainian military facilities as attack continues on second day

Europe, News February 25, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Russian armed forces destroyed 83 Ukrainian military facilities, four planes, and four drones, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said.

On February 25, Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov said that Russian forces have destroyed around 211 Ukrainian military installations, including 17 command centers, 39 radar units, 19 air defense missile systems, 67 tanks, and six warplanes.

According to the Russian defense ministry statement on the second day, the Russian military has crippled 83 Ukrainian military facilities and ground infrastructure, shot down two Su-27, two Su-24 planes, one helicopter, and four Bayraktar TB-2 drones during the special military operation in Ukraine.

Earlier on February 24, Konashenkov told reporters that “As a result of the strikes conducted by Russia’s Armed Forces, 74 ground facilities of Ukraine’s military infrastructure were knocked out of action. Among them are 11 airfields belonging to the Air Force, three command points, a Ukrainian Navy base and 18 radar stations of S-300 and Buk-M1 missile systems.”

More than 70 ground infrastructure facilities belonging to Ukraine were incapacitated by strikes carried out by Russia’s Armed Forces. Russian Defense Ministry also highlighted that Russian forces are not targeting Ukrainian cities, and strikes are limited to incapacitating Ukrainian military infrastructure. “There are no threats whatsoever to the civilian population,” the ministry said.

However several reports claimed that Russian airstrikes damaged an apartment complex outside of Kharkiv, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that so far 137 people have been killed, including civilians.

According to the United Nations’s refugee agency, approximately 100,000 Ukrainians have been displaced and thousands have fled to nearby European countries, as Russian attacks continue on the second day.

Ukraine’s defense ministry claimed that more than 1,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in the fighting, however, the Kremlin did not comment on its servicemen casualties in the operations.

*^{Damaged radar arrays and other military equipment at Ukrainian military facility outside Mariupol, Ukraine. (Image Credit: Sergei Grits/AP Photo)}*

Separately on February 24, thousands of Russians took to streets across the country to stage anti-war protests. Despite anti-war rallies across Russia, President Putin continued operations on the second day and blamed the Ukrainian government for the ongoing crisis.

Putin stated on February 24 that all the Ukrainian soldiers who refuse to perform unlawful orders of the Kyiv administration and give up arms will be able to freely leave the war zone.

Putin addressed Ukrainian servicemen by saying: “Do not perform their unlawful orders! I urge you to immediately disarm and go home. To make it clear: all servicemen of the Ukrainian army that will fulfill this demand will be able to freely leave the zone of combat action and return to their families. All the responsibility for possible bloodshed will be entirely on conscience of the regime ruling in the territory of Ukraine,” he added.

The Russian president said that the “special military operation” was aimed at protecting civilians in the eastern part of Ukraine and denazify the country. He also warned that if any country attempts to interfere would face “consequences you have never seen in history”.