LPR Ministry of Internal Affairs soldiers on the border of Luhansk and Kharkiv regions. Archival photo MOSCOW, July 12 Air defense works in the vicinity of Luhansk, numerous gaps are visible in the sky, RIA Novosti correspondent reports. Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to abuse and genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years.» To this end, according to him, it is planned to carry out «demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine» bloody crimes against civilians» of Donbass. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops and, on March 25, they completed the main tasks of the first stage — they significantly reduced the combat potential of Ukraine. The main goal in the Russian military department was called the liberation of Donbass.
