Bato Basanov, Russian tanker ace of war games world champion, died

As the General Staff of the Ukrainian Army confirmed at the morning session on Saturday, May 7, that “the enemy does not prevent the offensive in order to establish full control over the territory of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions and maintain the land corridor between them and Crimea. “, in recent hours Russian media confirmed the death of ace of the Kremlin tanker, Stone Basanov.

Basanov was considered a “hero” when he won in 2021 a international war game competition between tanks in front of military experts from 19 countries, including China. However, this experience was of little use to him in actual warfare.

Sergeant Stone Basanov, 25, from the region of buryatiawas on a team in the record-breaking World Tank Biathlon that performed last year in the war games, maneuvers observed by the Russian defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, and the head of the Army General Staff, Valery Gerasimov.

The Republic of Buryatia is one of the twenty -one republics which, together with forty -seven oblasts, nine krais, four autonomous districts and two federal cities, make up the eighty -three federal subjects of Russia and wherein strong ally of Putin in the war against Ukraine.

Basanov, was aboard an armored Russian T-72B3 and defeated soldiers from 19 countries in combat games, including China. Then, he awarded himself to Gerasimov, who is now the highest military official of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Basanov was a gunner in the 1st tank battalion company of 37th Motorized Rifle Brigade of the Russian Defense Forces. According to the Daily Mail, it took seven weeks before the Russians recovered his body and returned him to his family for his burial.

Their Friends and family gave a joint statement: “Bato is an open, helpful, very sociable person, a loyal companion and friend, who is always ready to help. Cheerful, smiling and sincere, Bato is always the pride of our familya kind, faithful and much loved child “.

The Russian offensive in the Donbas

In the last few hours, while Russia’s offensive in the Donbas region has not stopped, Ukraine has launched counter-offensives in the Kharkov and Izium regions in an attempt to force the Russian Army to stop advancing towards Slovyansk and Kramatorskthe main bastion of the Ukrainian Army in Donetsk, where it ensures control of the Donbas.

“The Ukrainian counteroffensive includes a wide arch north and east of the city of Kharkiv has gained ground“, found the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), in an analysis dated this Friday. This will allow, according to analysts, to repel Russian forces up to a distance that puts Kharkov, the second largest city in Russia, safe.Ukraine, from enemy artillery.

The Ukrainian Army has intensified its actions on the arch between the cities of Kharkov and Izium, where according to the General Staff, “the enemy continues to bomb artillery positions“near Kharkiv, meanwhile, Russian troops are conducting aerial exploration missions by drones in Izium.

Despite this, according to the ISW, “the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the north and east of the city of Kharkov has made progress in the last 24 hours”, which could allow it to expel Russian artillery in that area. the operation is directed to “secure the mainland and disrupt Russia’s offensive operations“in this region.

The Ukrainian military denounced that Russian forces blew up three bridges in the towns of Tsyrkuny and Rusky Tyshkynortheast of Kharkov, with the aim of stopping the counter-offensive.

The military entity ensured that the Ukrainian military repelled eight Russian Army attacks on this front on the last day, where destroyed 8 tanks, 7 artillery, 7 armored vehiclesamong other fighting equipment.

Ukrainian forces are trying to avoid the siege of the city Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, which could come true thanks to a Russian advance from the east, at a time when the militias of the People’s Republic of Lugansk were beating Severodonetsk in support of the Russian Army.