MOSCOW. June 5 (Interfax) - Russian forces have thwarted the Ukrainian army's attempt to launch an offensive in the southern Donetsk sector, in the vicinity of Neskuchnoye in the Donetsk People's Republic and Novodarovka in the Zaporozhye region, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.
"Intensive operations by units from the eastern group of forces and aircraft and artillery strikes inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy near Neskuchnoye in the Donetsk People's Republic and Novodarovka in the Zaporozhye region," Konashenkov said at a press briefing on Monday.
The Ukrainian army lost up to 300 troops, 16 tanks, 26 armored combat vehicles and 14 trucks in the area over the past 24 hours, he said.
"The enemy did not achieve its objectives," Konashenkov said.
The Ukrainian army made an unsuccessful attempt to launch a large-scale offensive in the southern Donetsk sector on June 4, Konashenkov said. Six mechanized battalions and two tank battalions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were engaged in the operation, he said.