MOSCOW, May 20. /TASS/. Over 1.377 million people have been evacuated from the territories of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR correspondingly) since the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister General of the Army Sergey Shoigu said on Friday.

"I would like to point out that the Armed Forces of Russia resort to all possible measures to avoid casualties among civilians," Shoigu said at a meeting with top military commanders. "For this purpose, humanitarian corridors stay operational on a regular basis."

"Since the start of the special military operation, over 1.377 million people have been evacuated from the dangerous areas of the [DPR, LPR] republics as well as from Ukraine," the minister added.

Russia’s special military operation in Donbass

The situation at the line of engagement in Donbass escalated on February 17. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) reported the most massive bombardments by the Ukrainian military in recent months, which damaged civilian infrastructure and caused civilian casualties.

On February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced recognizing the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Russia recognized the Donbass republics in accordance with the DPR and LPR constitutions within the boundaries of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions as of the beginning of 2014.

Russian President Putin said in a televised address on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine. The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories, noting that the operation was aimed at the denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine.