LUGANSK, October 6. /TASS/. Russian units have significantly improved their position in the Krasny Liman and Seversk areas of the special military operation zone over the past week, liberating five settlements in the Donetsk People’s Republic, military expert Andrey Marochko told TASS.

"The situation on the western borders of the Lugansk People’s Republic has changed over the past week. The position of our units in the Krasny Liman and Seversk areas has significantly improved thanks to the decisive actions of the battlegroups West and South. Positive changes on the line of engagement and the advance of our troops have led to an extension of the buffer zone and a reduction in the area of occupied LPR territory," he said after analyzing data from the Russian Defense Ministry.

Marochko recalled that Russian forces liberated five DPR settlements over the week: Kirovsk, Shandrigolovo, Derilovo, Mayskoye, and Seversk Maly. At the same time, acording to the expert, the enemy focused its main efforts on its defense. "The number of counterattacks by Ukrainian militants has decreased by almost half," Marochko noted.