Ukrainian Minister of Defense: Over 42,500 Russian soldiers and militants are deployed on the occupied territory of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions

June 8, 2015 (UATODAY) Ukrainian minister of defense Stephan Poltorak has said some 42,500 militants and more than 550 tanks are deployed on the territory of so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People Republics. 

"The joint group of Russians and militants on the militant-controlled area consists of more than 42,500 troops and more than 550 tanks", Stephan Poltorak said during the NATO-Ukraine Council meeting in Kyiv on June 8, 2015. "Such amount of artillery would be enough for an average European country", the minister of defense added. Stephan Poltorak pointed out that Russia remains the main organizer and sponsor of the war in the Eastern Ukraine.