About 10,000 killed in east Ukraine, 7% of Ukraine under military occupation

"Almost 10,000 people have died. Over 2,700 of them are Ukrainian servicemen killed by fire of combined Russian-militant forces. This number exceeds the U.S. military losses in Afghanistan for the last 15 years," the president said at the 'Ukraine's Battle for Freedom Continues' forum in Washington on Thursday. "[Nearly] 1.75 million internally displaced persons lost their homes in Donetsk and Luhansk regions and moved to other regions of Ukraine… Seven percent of Ukrainian territory is under occupation," he said. "I, as President, the Ukrainian government and local authorities are tasked with finding shelter, houses, jobs, education for these people and their children. We expect and hope that in the very near future 1.75 million Ukrainians will have an opportunity to return to their homes in Donetsk and Luhansk regions," he added.