MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/. Russian Defense Minister General of the Army Sergey Shoigu inspected the grouping of troops in the areas of the special military operation and spoke with servicemen on the front line, the Defense Ministry reported on Sunday.

" Defense Minister of the Russian Federation Army General Sergey Shoigu made a working trip to the Southern Military District and inspected the group of troops (forces) in the areas of the special military operation," the ministry said. The Defense Minister flew around the areas of deployment of troops and checked the positions of Russian units on the front line.

"At the front line, Sergey Shoigu spoke with Russian servicemen and thanked the personnel for the exemplary performance of combat missions," the ministry said.

At the command post of the group, Shoigu listened to the reports of the commanders on the current situation, as well as on the actions of the Russian troops.

"When listening to the commanders, the Defense Minister of the Russian Federation paid special attention to the organization of comprehensive support for the troops, the conditions for deploying personnel in the field, as well as the work of medical and rear units," the Defense Ministry added.

While visiting the joint staff of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine om Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin listened to proposals of troop commanders regarding possible future actions in the short-and mid-term perspective.