DONETSK, January 12. /TASS/. Polish mercenaries make up a significant part of the Ukrainian army units opposing the Russian military in Maryinka, west of Donetsk, a volunteer from one of the battalions of the DPR people's militia, who introduced himself by his call sign - Krasnoyarsk, told TASS on Thursday.

"The Ukrainian army has sustained heavy losses in Maryinka. We have wiped out many. Quite a few mercenaries from Poland are fighting there," the volunteer said.

On Wednesday, the acting head of the DPR, Denis Pushilin, said that Maryinka was practically under the control of the Russian army, but the Ukrainian forces "managed to gain a foothold in the area of private households on the outskirts."

Earlier, Pushilin stressed that the Ukrainian military had eight years to build a strong defense in Maryinka, with numerous fire emplacements, trenches along the private houses and tunnels under them. He pointed out that gaining control of this community was crucial to advancing towards Krasnogorovka, from where the Ukrainian troops shell Donetsk. The DPR people’s militia has explained that the liberation of Maryinka would make Alexandrovka, the Petrovsky district and the Tekstilshchik neighborhood of Donetsk inaccessible to Ukrainian artillery.