MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. German-made Leopard tanks have not yet reached the battle contact line in the zone of responsibility of battlegroup Center. The group’s commander Andrey Mordvichev reported this to Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu in the zone of the special military operation in the Krasny Liman area.

The Defense Minister presented state awards and premium firearms to servicemen of the battlegroup Center. After the ceremony, Shoigu talked to the servicemen and asked if there were any heroes among the awardees who personally destroyed or captured enemy military equipment. The commander of a tank company, who was present at the award ceremony, reported that he had destroyed two enemy T-72 tanks in combat and received special payments for this.

The Defense Minister asked if Leopard tanks appeared in the area of responsibility of the group. The group’s commander replied that these tanks had not yet reached the battle contact line.

"No, we're not lucky yet, Comrade Defense Minister," Mordvichev joked.

Shoigu thanked the military for their service. "Our guys are beating them hard there, so they may not reach you yet. Well done! Thank you again for your service, good luck to you guys," the Russian Defense Minister added.

The Defense Ministry recalled that in addition to special payments from the ministry for the personal destruction or capture of enemy military equipment, military personnel receive cash bonuses in the amount of 1 million rubles ($10,430) for one destroyed unit of Western-made armored vehicles from funds established by entrepreneurs and famous Russian artists.

On Friday, Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov reported that the Ukrainian military has lost over 43,000 troops since it launched its counteroffensive in early June.

According to him, these figures do not include those wounded and foreign mercenaries evacuated to Ukrainian military hospitals and abroad, and also the personnel eliminated as a result of high-precision strikes by long-range weapons in rear areas. He added that since the beginning of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, the Russian armed forces have also destroyed over 4,900 enemy weapons, including 26 aircraft and 25 Leopard tanks.