- 250,000 Russians killed so far – Ukraine
- In February, the UK Ministry of Defence estimated between 40,000 and 60,000 had been killed in the first 12 months of the war.
- While it’s unlikely the Russian death toll is anything close to what Ukraine is claiming, Moscow continues deliberately masking the true number.
- Ukrainian forces ‘trying to cut off’ Russian forces to set conditions for future counteroffensive operations.
- A prominent Wagner-affiliated Russian blogger argued that Ukrainian forces are “methodically trying to cut off the Russian grouping in southern Ukraine and disrupt its logistics”.
In almost every respect during this war, it’s a case of Ukraine saying one thing and Russia saying the other. Death tolls are just one example. Ukrainian military officials have been offering daily updates on the number of Russian soldiers that have been “eliminated” – and they claim the total has just crossed a quarter of a million.
Citing General Staff sources, the Ukrainian website Ukrinform said 540 Russian service people have been killed in the past day, bringing the overall number to 250,240. If that figure is correct, it works out at an average of 472 Russian soldiers killed every day of the war. It’s not clear how Ukraine arrived at that number. But what is certain is that it’s much, much higher than every other estimate. A consensus has broadly formed around a figure just a fifth of that.
In February, the UK Ministry of defence estimated between 40,000 and 60,000 had been killed in the first 12 months of the war. Five months of fighting since then will have increased that figure. The White House has a similar number. Top secret US intelligence documents leaked online in April suggested up to 43,000 Russian soldiers had been killed. And last month, an investigation by two independent Russian media outlets – Meduza and Mediazone – used statistical modelling and arrived at a similar number again: 47,000.
As you might expect, the Kremlin continues playing down any sign that an invasion they said would be over within weeks isn’t going to plan. Officially, only around 6,000 Russians are dead.
So, while it’s unlikely the Russian death toll is anything close to what Ukraine is claiming, Moscow continues deliberately masking the true number.
Ukrainian forces ‘trying to cut off’ Russian forces to set conditions for future counteroffensive operations Over the weekend, Kyiv claimed responsibility for attacks on two bridges – one in Russian-annexed Crimea and one near the Ukrainian port city Henichesk in the Kherson region.
The road bridges run along critical Russian ground lines of communication, and the attacks caused the country’s forces to divert traffic along longer routes, a US-based thinktank has said. The strikes were part of a Ukrainian campaign to destroy Russian forces and their supplies to battle areas. This is aimed at setting conditions “for future decisive counteroffensive operations”, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said.
A prominent Wagner-affiliated Russian blogger argued that the attacks showed Ukrainian forces are “methodically trying to cut off the Russian grouping in southern Ukraine and disrupt its logistics”, it added.
Kyiv used similar tactics in the Kherson counteroffensive last year, which led to its troops liberating swathes of territory in November.
“The blogger noted that Russian defences on west (right) bank Kherson Oblast broke down in a matter of days following months of Ukrainian strikes on Russian logistics, and expressed concern that the situation could repeat itself,” the ISW said.
The strikes will likely disrupt the transport of Russian personnel. material and equipment from Crimea to “critical defensive operations” in Zaporizhzhia for some “undetermined time”, it said.
(With inputs from agencies)
