“The West does not abandon attempts to drag Russia into the conflict in the Donbass, claiming the alleged presence of Russian military and equipment here. However, in five years, in addition to unfounded accusations, no evidence was provided, ”the report said.
As the representative of the department noted, “the Russian army, like its tanks, was not here and is not here.”
“The weapons that were used were captured. Most of it was either repelled in battle or simply abandoned by the Ukrainian military, ”he added.
The deputy head of the DPR People’s Police Department, Eduard Basurin, also said that the republic’s tank units: former Ukrainian equipment, took part in the battles near Ilovaisk.
“There was no talk of any Russian technology. No evidence has been presented. Words alone. The former Ukrainian equipment was used there, which the Ukrainian military threw here when they left the Donbass. The captured technique was used, ”Interfax quoted him as saying.
As Basurin pointed out, the Ukrainian army was armed with various types of tank equipment, including the T-72 and T-80.
Earlier, The Guardian wrote that the research group Forensic Architecture collected "evidence" of the participation of the Russian military in the battles of Ilovaisk in August 2014.
So, satellite images were collected, which allegedly depicted Russian armed convoys in Ukraine, in particular, T-72B3 tanks.
Russia has repeatedly stressed that it is not a party to the conflict in Ukraine and acts as a mediator in resolving the situation.