Moscow, January 5, 2025 – The Europe Today: Russian forces have shot down a Ukrainian MiG-29 fighter jet, according to a statement issued by the Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday. The ministry also reported significant losses for Kiev’s forces, including several Western-made armored vehicles.
“Seventeen counterattacks by the Ukrainian armed forces have been repelled. The enemy has lost more than 410 soldiers, two Leopard tanks manufactured in Germany, an infantry fighting vehicle, and three armored personnel carriers, including an M113 made in the United States,” the statement noted, detailing operations in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR).
Additionally, Kiev’s forces lost a 105-mm L-119 cannon manufactured in Great Britain. During two counterattacks in the DPR, Ukrainian forces suffered a total loss of 230 service personnel, as reported by Moscow.
Since February 2022, the European Union has delivered a significant number of Soviet-era MiG-29 warplanes to Kiev. Poland, in particular, supplied Ukraine with several such fighter jets in 2023. However, Polish Deputy Defense Minister Pawel Zalewski stated in December that further transfers were “off the table” until Warsaw receives US-made F-35 jets to ensure its national security.
The US and its allies have provided Ukraine with over $100 billion worth of weapons, equipment, and ammunition since the escalation of the conflict in February 2022. Despite their involvement, Western nations insist that these actions do not make them direct participants in the hostilities. Moscow has consistently warned against such arms deliveries, cautioning that they could escalate the conflict without altering the outcome on the battlefield.
