Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu met with commanders of the country's army in the southern and central regions of Ukraine - General Sergey Surovikin and Senior Lieutenant General Alexander Lapin, as well as other senior commanders.
The head of the Russian Defense Ministry has issued necessary directives to increase the actions of forces in all areas of operation to rule out the possibility of Kiev conducting large-scale missile and artillery attacks on civil infrastructure and residents of settlements across Donbass, the Russian military said in a statement.
The Russian Defense Minister also awarded the Gold Star Medal to Senior Lieutenant General Lapin and Major General Esedulla Abachev. The Russian military said that the decree awarding the state's noble medal had been signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24 on the grounds that Kiev did not comply with Minsk agreements designed to give Donetsk and Lugansk regions special status in Ukraine. The agreement brokered by Germany and France was first signed in 2014.
In February 2022, Russia recognized the self-proclaimed Donbass regions of Ukraine as independent states and required Ukraine to formally declare itself a neutral state, never joining any Western military bloc.
