MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. Russia’s defense ministry reports losses among Russian servicemen taking part in the special military operation in Ukraine, the ministry’s spokesman, Igor Konashenkov said on Sunday.

"Russian servicemen are showing courage and heroism during the special military operation. But, regrettably, there are killed and wounded among them," he said, adding that Russia’s losses are by far lesser than "losses among Ukrainian troops" and nationalists.

He also said that several Russian soldiers have been taken prisoner. "We know how Ukrainian Nazis are treating those few Russian servicemen who have been taken prisoner. We see that they use the same tortures as German Nazis during the Great Patriotic War (the Eastern Front during WWII where the former Soviet Union fought against Nazi Germany - TASS)," he said.

He vowed that the Russian military will continue to treat surrendering Ukrainian troops in a humane way. "We understand that they took an oath to the people of Ukraine. All those surrendering arms and stopping resistance will be released to their families," he stressed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on Thursday morning that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in order to protect people "who have been suffering from abuse and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years." The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories.

When clarifying the unfolding developments, the Russian Defense Ministry reassured that Russian troops are not targeting Ukrainian cities, but are limited to surgically striking and incapacitating Ukrainian military infrastructure. There are no threats whatsoever to the civilian population.