The Russian Ministry of Defense revealed the role of its advanced Mi-28 helicopter, known as the "Super Night Hunter", in the battles, at a time when Washington announced a large statistic of Russian human losses since the beginning of the Ukraine war.
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stressed that the objectives of the Russian operation in Ukraine have gone beyond the Donbas region in the east.
Lavrov said - in press statements on Wednesday - that the objectives of the Russian operation in Ukraine now include the Zaporozhye and Kherson provinces in southern Ukraine, and a number of other regions.
Lavrov also warned that providing the West with long-range weapons to Ukraine would make the Russian military operation expand even further, and that Moscow would not allow foreign weapons to remain on Ukrainian soil threatening its security, as he put it.
The Russian Defense Ministry revealed targets destroyed by the advanced Mi-28 helicopter (Anatolia)
In a related context, the Russian Ministry of Defense published footage of the combat actions of the Mi-28 multipurpose attack helicopters, known as the "Super Night Hunter".
According to the ministry, during the combat missions, the command posts, a battery of multiple missile launchers and armored vehicles of units of the Ukrainian forces were destroyed.
American stats
On the other hand, William Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), said that the United States estimates the size of Russian casualties in Ukraine so far at about 15,000 dead and perhaps 45,000 wounded, acknowledging that Kyiv has also incurred significant losses.
Burns added at the "Aspen" security forum in Colorado that the latest estimates issued by the US intelligence services will be a number close to 15,000 dead (from Russian forces), and perhaps three times that of the injured.
He pointed out that "the Ukrainians also suffered, maybe a little less, but as you know, the human losses are huge," as he put it.
Burns said that Russia has made limited progress in Donbass, eastern Ukraine, during the past three months, stressing that the Ukrainian resistance is still cohesive.
Moscow and Kiev exchange statistics for the other side's heavy losses in the battles, but the two sides do not deny that there were losses in the ranks of their forces.
Washington vows
In exchange for the Russian escalation in statements, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that his country will provide a new package of military aid to Ukraine, including missile systems, this week.
Austin vowed to confront any Russian attempt to annex Ukrainian lands, stressing that the aid provided by his country made a big difference on the battlefield.
The United States has provided Ukraine with advanced weapons, foremost of which is the HIMARS missile system (Associated Press)
In turn, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, said that the Donabs region in eastern Ukraine had not fallen to the Russian forces, and that the Ukrainian forces were resisting fiercely.
The US State Department also warned Moscow against annexing the Donbass region to Russian territory, and State Department spokesman Ned Price said - in a press conference - that the annexation of Ukrainian territory by force would constitute a flagrant violation of the Charter of the United Nations, and that his country would not allow its passage without punishment.
In Kyiv, Ukrainian Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov said that his country's forces need more artillery systems and long-range missiles;
To deter Russia and launch a counterattack in the Donbass region.
Field developments
On the ground, Al-Jazeera correspondent reported that the city of Kharkiv (northeast) was subjected to a series of missile strikes that caused explosions in a number of neighborhoods of the city.
Sirens also sounded in the Kharkiv province continuously throughout the last night, coinciding with the sounds of explosions heard in the towns located in the countryside of the province.
The reporter said that the bombing was renewed at dawn today on the Mykolaiv district in the south of the country, adding that he had detected about 10 explosions in different locations of the city.
For its part, the Ukrainian army confirmed the killing of 111 Russian soldiers, and the destruction of 6 ammunition depots and a command and control center for the Russian forces in shelling of its forces on separate locations in Kherson.
nuclear plant
As the fighting continues to the east, British military intelligence said - on Thursday - that Russian forces are likely approaching Ukraine's second largest power station in "Vohlherska", 50 km northeast of Donetsk.
And the British Ministry of Defense stated - in a periodic bulletin - that "Russia is prioritizing the seizure of vital national infrastructure, such as power stations."
She added that Moscow may be trying to penetrate Vohlherska as part of its efforts to regain momentum in its advance towards the major cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced the killing of more than 200 Ukrainian marines, by Russian missile strikes targeting their positions in the Odessa region.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov also announced the destruction of an American "Harpoon" missile platform in the same province.