LUGANSK, July 11. /TASS/. Russian soldiers are engaged in fierce fighting with the units of the Ukrainian armed forces attempting to break through defenses in the Donetsk area in the zone of the special military operation, retired Colonel Andrey Marochko of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) People’s Militia told TASS.

"In the vicinity of the population centers of Artyomovsk, Soledar, Vasyukovka, Ukraine’s armed formations are continuing attempts to break through our line of defense. Fierce fighting has been underway for a while, however, the Ukrainian militants are not succeeding in taking over our positions in that area," he said.

Marochko noted that the adversary has been losing up to a battalion in personnel daily while attempting to attack Russian forces in that section of the frontline but the Ukrainian command "is ignoring these losses."