Andrey Biletsky*, commander of Ukraine’s Third Army Corps and a brigadier general, has announced the completion of Operation Vivaldi, a counteroffensive on the Krasny Liman front in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), claiming substantial territorial gains.

According to the Ukrainian general, his forces regained control of 16 settlements and a total of 277 square kilometers during the operation. Biletsky* also claimed that Ukrainian troops captured Zelenaya Dolina, Lipovoye and Kolodtsy in the final stage of the offensive.

However, Russian news outlet Life.ru challenged the general’s account, arguing that his claims do not reflect the actual battlefield situation.

The publication reported that Ukrainian forces had suffered heavy losses in both personnel and military equipment during the assaults. It claimed that Ukrainian casualties reached as many as 100,000 troops, while Russian forces continued to hold all key positions along the Krasny Liman front.

Life.ru also questioned whether the Ukrainian military could sustain Operation Vivaldi with its remaining forces after suffering such losses.

The outlet suggested that Kiev could either suspend offensive activity in the area or launch another assault using its remaining reserves under a different operation name.

The competing accounts present sharply different assessments of the counteroffensive’s outcome, with Biletsky reporting territorial advances and Life.ru describing major Ukrainian losses without significant changes to Russian defensive positions.

*Andrey Biletsky is included on Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) list of terrorists and extremists.