MOSCOW. Aug 7 (Interfax) - Russia's central group of forces has conducted active operations over the past day, while the western, eastern and southern groups of forces improved their positions, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.
"Units from the central group of forces continued active operations and hit detachments of the 32nd and 117th Mechanized Brigades, the 1st Tank Brigade, and the 95th Air Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the 109th Territorial Defense Brigade near Toretsk, Grodovka, Nikolayevka and Druzhba in the Donetsk People's Republic [DPR]," the ministry said.
Two counterattacks by enemy assault groups were repelled there, it said.
The western, eastern, and southern groups of forces improved positions in their sectors, it said.
In the central group of forces' zone of responsibility, the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost up to 345 troops, an armored combat vehicle, two trucks, a 122mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, and a 122mm D-30 howitzer, it said.
The northern group of forces hit troops and hardware of four Ukrainian brigades near Yunakovka and Basovka in the Sumy region and Tikhoye and Volchanskiye Khutora in the Kharkov region. The Ukrainian army lost up to 220 troops, six tanks, two infantry vehicles, four armored personnel carriers, six armored combat vehicles, six pickup trucks, two self-propelled launchers of a Buk air defense system, and four artillery systems, it said.
Units from the western group of forces improved their tactical position and hit detachments of four Ukrainian brigades near Sinkovka in the Kharkov region, Stelmakhovka in the Lugansk People's Republic, and Novosadovoye in the DPR. A counterattack by an assault group of the 1st National Guard Brigade was repelled, it said.
In that area, the enemy lost more than 530 troops, a Bradley infantry vehicle, a M113 armored personnel carrier, 18 trucks, a British-made 155mm AS-90 self-propelled artillery system, six artillery systems, and an Anklav-N EW station. Four ammo depots were destroyed, it said.
"Units from the southern group of forces continued to take better lines and positions and hit troops and hardware of the Ukrainian 24th and 61st Mechanized Brigades and 5th and 10th Assault Brigades near Chasov Yar, Predtechino and Konstantinovka in the DPR. A counterattack by an assault group of the Ukrainian 5th Assault Brigade was repelled," it said.
The Ukrainian army lost up to 620 troops, an infantry vehicle, nine trucks, eight artillery systems, and two Anklav-N EW stations there, the ministry said.
Units from the eastern group of forces improved their front lines and hit troops and hardware of three Ukrainian brigades near Zolotaya Niva and Oktyabr in the DPR and Zaliznichnoye in the Zaporozhye region. A counterattack by an enemy assault group was repelled. The Ukrainian army lost up to 110 troops, eight trucks, and two artillery systems. An ammo depot was destroyed, it said.
Units from the Dnepr group of forces hit detachments of two Ukrainian brigades near Malaya Tokmachka in the Zaporozhye region and Nikolayevka in the Kherson region. The Ukrainian army lost up to 60 troops, seven trucks, and an Anklav-N EW station, it said.