The Russian army has suffered “colossal losses” in recent days near the towns of Avdiyivka and Maryinka in Donetsk region, losing about two companies or up to 400 soldiers per day, Ukrainian military spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkovskyi said on Sunday, the Kyiv Independent reported.

Near Avdiyivka (Donetsk), the Ukrainian military fired at a French Cesar howitzerPhoto: LIBKOS / AP / Profimedia

According to him, the Russian army still refuses to “lose hope” of a successful offensive in this area.

Dmytrashkovsky added that Russian prisoners of war complained that they were thrown into battle by commanders “intoxicated and without any preparation”, raising soldiers in the middle of the night at gunpoint and forcing them to attack the Ukrainian army.

By mid-March, Russia had made significant gains around Avdiivka, at which time Dmytrashkovsky warned that the city could become “the second Baachmut.”

Since then, Ukraine has stabilized the front line in the area and stopped further Russian advances.

As of Sunday, Russia has lost more than 178,000 troops in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion on February 24 last year, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported.

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