Russian President Vladimir Putin visited a Russian military headquarters in the occupied Kherson and Luhansk regions on Tuesday morning.
At the Dnieper division headquarters in the partially-occupied Kherson region, Putin recieved reports from Airborne Forces commander Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky and Dnieper area commander Colonel General Oleg Makarevich.
The commanders discussed the ongoing operations in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia theaters. The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday that it had killed over 55 Ukrainian soldiers, three armored vehicles, a US-made M77 artillery piece, and four drones. In Zaporizhia, the Russian military claimed that 60 Ukrainian servicemen, an ammunition depot, two pickup trucks, and one howitzer were destroyed. It said that artillery and air forces from Vostok forces had bombarded six towns in the region.
Putin visited Vostok National Guard in Luhansk People's Republic region
Putin also visited the Vostok National Guard in the breakaway Luhansk People's Republic region, which along with the partially-occupied Zaporizhzhia and Kherson region was annexed by Russia. The move was rejected as illegitimate by leading western states.
The Russian leader gave troops religious icons to commemorate the Christian holiday of Easter.
The visit follows a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for a report on the surprise inspection of the Pacific Fleet, which had been directly ordered by Putin, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
Putin had previously visited Russian positions in occupied Ukraine on March 18, in which he had toured the city of Mariupol.