MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. Russian artillery troops delivered a strike on Ukrainian troops who attempted a counterattack, more than 50 Ukrainian troops were neutralized, Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Sunday.
"In the southern Donetsk direction, Russian artillery fire hit two tactical groups of the Ukrainian army’s 72nd mechanized and 68th infantry brigades who tried to counterattack Russian positions near the settlements of Pavlovka and Vladimirovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic," he said, adding that Ukraine lost 50 troops, one tank and three armored combat vehicles.