MOSCOW, December 8. /TASS/. The constant rotation of Ukrainian forces on the Avdeyevka direction indicates that Ukrainian armed forces suffer high casualties and that Russian forces do their job, DPR People’s Militia Colonel, DPR lawmaker Andrey Bayevsky said on Russian TV Thursday.
"We are talking about thousands. […] Clearly, we are talking about a rather serious and […] rather fortified group. Still, we are grinding it down. Had we not been grinding it down, there would have been no such rotations - regular, daily, or, rather nightly," he said, answering a question about the size of the Ukrainian ground near Avdeyevka.
He explained that these rotations make it impossible to accurately assess the number of Ukrainian servicemen.
"It is rather difficult to name any precise numbers. The enemy’s casualties are very high, so, naturally, rotations happen constantly. We register almost every night: the number of personnel changes, people are being transported in and out. It is extremely difficult to register a number at any given moment. Clearly, we are talking about thousands, but how many thousands - it is very difficult to tell," Bayevsky said.
Ukrainian forces have been shelling Donetsk daily from positions in and around Avdeyevka. The city, located north of Donetsk, was turned into one of the main fortified areas during the conflict in Donbass.