MOSCOW, July 4. /TASS/. Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff and First Deputy Chief of the General Staff Sergey Rudskoy held a briefing to outline the main stages of the liberation of the city of Konstantinovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), which, according to him, is the key to Kiev’s last stronghold in Donbass - the Kramatorsk-Slavyansk agglomeration.

TASS has compiled Rudskoy's key statements.

Ukrainian defense system

- Kiev had been building a system of defensive positions in Konstantinovka since 2014 and significantly reinforced it after the fall of Bakhmut (known as Artyomovsk in Russia).

- Ukrainian forces in Konstantinovka established more than 80 obstacle zones and over 50 fortified defensive strongpoints, including facilities such as kindergartens and schools.

- The first defensive line in Konstantinovka consisted of a system of 30 km of explosive barriers. The second defensive line reached up to 35 km.

- The defense system included trenches and ditches, covered by minefields.

- Konstantinovka was the most heavily fortified Ukrainian defensive area.

Ukrainian forces

- The city was held by nationalist formations from the Lyut brigade, considered the most combat-ready Ukrainian unit.

- Ukraine formed a grouping of seven brigades totaling up to 15,500 personnel to hold Konstantinovka.

Liberating city territory

- Russian forces took control of more than 66 square km during the liberation of Konstantinovka.

- The old town of Konstantinovka, featuring low-rise buildings and a high-rise district, was the most difficult to capture.

- Russian forces took control of the Stroysteklo plant in Konstantinovka in late April.

- Administrative buildings in the Tsentralny and Krasny Gorodok neighbourhoods were taken under control in late May.

- The Megatex industrial zone came under Russia’s control in early June.

- The southwestern area of Konstantinovka, the so-called Ukrainsky Khutor, was liberated in mid-June.

- The Yuzhny and Vtoroy districts were liberated in the second half of May, while a livestock complex on the outskirts of the city was seized in early June.

Enemy losses

- The Ukrainian command ordered the army to hold Konstantinovka in an attempt to demonstrate its strength to the West.

- Kiev lost about 13,500 troops in Konstantinovka in an attempt to show alleged successes.

- Ukrainian forces were pushed back several kilometers from Konstantinovka.

- The enemy failed to hold Konstantinovka under the pressure of Russian troops despite all efforts.