ANKARA
Ukraine has claimed that 9,000 members of the Russian military are in its eastern regions where Kiev’s forces are clashing with pro-Moscow separatists.
Deputy commander of Kiev’s ‘Anti-terrorist Operation Center’ Sergey Galushko said on Friday that an additional large number of Russian soldiers were also deployed near the Ukrainian-Russian border.
Galushko claimed that Russian soldiers in Ukraine have 532 armored vehicles, 153 cannons, 190 tanks, 89 multiple launch rocket systems, 66 air defense vehicles and four tactical missile systems.
He claimed that Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine are helping an estimated 33,000 separatists.
Galushko also said that 368 tanks, 940 armored vehicles and 375 cannons were in the hands of pro-Russian separatists.
At least 6,417 people have been killed in more than 13 months of fighting in eastern Ukraine, the United Nations say.
In its latest report, the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine says that the situation in eastern regions in worsening and warns that a wide-raging conflict may erupt.
