White House warns ‘intense’ Donbas fighting will continue in coming weeks
Mike Brest
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The fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the contested Donbas region has been “particularly intense in the last several weeks,” National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby said, warning that it will continue.
Over the weekend, a Ukrainian airstrike hit a Russian provisional military base near Makeyevka in the Donetsk region, killing between dozens and hundreds of Russian soldiers.
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The Russian Defense Ministry said the death toll was 89 on Wednesday, an increase from the day before, and the Ukrainian armed forces said at least 400 Russian soldiers were killed and another 300 wounded, while Kirby declined to say what the U.S.’s assessment was on the loss of life.
“The fighting there in the Donbas has been quite intense in recent weeks, and it’s pretty clear to us and certainly clear to the Ukrainians that the Russians continue to flow manpower in to try to tip the balance there, particularly in the Donetsk area,” the NSC spokesman said Wednesday. “And it’s war, and it’s bloody, and it’s vicious, and it has been over the last several weeks. … The winter is upon us. The fighting has not stopped. And the fighting in the east has been particularly intense in the last several weeks. And I think we need to expect that that kind of fighting will continue for quite some time.”
The Russian Ministry claimed that soldiers’ use of personal cellphones against the rules allowed the Ukrainians to track and uncover their location prior to the strike.
“Circumstances of the incident are currently being investigated by a commission,” First Deputy Chief of the Main Military-Political Directorate of the Armed Forces of Russia Lt. Gen. Sergei Sevryukov said on Telegram. “But it is already obvious that the main reason, despite the restriction, was turning on and massive use of mobile phones by the personnel within the range area of enemy firepower. This factor allowed the enemy to locate the personnel for launching the missile strike.”
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Russian military leaders said the Ukrainians used a U.S.-provided High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, known as HIMARS, in the attack.
Kirby said the U.S. could provide additional HIMARS, which have proven to be effective, to Ukraine in upcoming aid packages.
“We are and will continue to provide them the kinds of systems and assistance that they need to defend themselves. And yes, that has included HIMARS in the past, and it could very well include more HIMARS going forward. What HIMARS gives them in this particular part of Ukraine is what we call long-range fires. It’s a standoff distance, defensive capability. Well, obviously can strike offensively as well. But I mean, the point is, it gives them range and distance and space in an area of Ukraine, which is still a lot of open, open ground.”