Press
Losses in the Ukrainian war are steadily increasing. The numbers have been exploding for several days. The reason is the Russian attack on Kharkiv.
Kharkiv – A bitter war has been raging in Europe for more than two years. May 17th is already the 814th day on which the Ukraine tried to defend against a large-scale Russian invasion. The fighting at the front is extremely bloody. The losses on both sides are correspondingly high.
As long as that Ukraine war is still ongoing, the numbers can only be estimated. Neither Russia Ukraine still provides regular information on its own losses, but the military leadership of both sides keeps this data secret. From a neutral perspective, it is therefore very difficult to accurately determine the number of victims.
Losses in the Ukrainian war can only be estimated
However, both sides like to point out the enemy’s casualty figures. This is what the then Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in February of 444,000 wounded or killed Ukrainian soldiers. And the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky quantified Russian losses at that time amounted to 180,000 dead and 500,000 wounded. This information could not be independently verified.
One thing stood out: the number of casualties on the Russian side mentioned by Zelensky was significantly higher than the daily updated count of the Ukrainian armed forces, which put the total number of Russian losses at that time at around 410,000 dead and wounded. The US Department of Defense estimated the number of killed or wounded Russian soldiers at 315,000 in mid-February.
Ukraine speaks of high Russian losses in the Kharkiv offensive in the Ukrainian war
The figures reported by the General Staff in Kiev are once again of great interest. The Ukrainian military has been registering a significant increase in Russian losses for days. This is obviously related to the Russian offensive near the city of Kharkiv. For days, Ukraine has been desperately trying to stop the attack on its eastern border. Extremely heavy fighting is currently underway there.
The fighting near Kharkiv is apparently being carried out with extreme severity by Russia. As in other areas, the Russian army is proceeding on the new front near Kharkiv without considering its own high losses, the General Staff in Kiev said. A look at the data suggests that Russia is paying a heavy toll in blood. According to the Ukrainian General Staff, more than 1,200 Russian soldiers have been wounded or killed in each of the past seven days:
17th of May | 1410 |
May 16th | 1520 |
May 15th | 1510 |
May 14th | 1400 |
May 13th | 1740 |
12th of May | 1260 |
May 11th | 1320 |
Putin is apparently accepting high Russian losses in the Ukraine war
Kremlin boss Wladimir Putin has shown no scruples about sending its troops into costly battles throughout the Ukraine War. Ukraine had not expected this either. Former commander-in-chief Valeriy Zalushnyj was once convinced that sooner or later Russia would withdraw because of the high losses. He was astonished that Putin didn’t do this: “150,000 deaths would have led to ending the war in any other country,” said Zalushnyj in an interview with the in November 2023 Economist.
At the beginning of May, Britain estimated the number of Russian casualties in the Ukraine war at 465,000. And French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné told the Latvian resident Novaya Gazeta Europe In an interview published on May 3, Paris put the total number of Russian casualties at around 500,000, including 150,000 dead. Meanwhile, on the morning of May 17th, the General Staff of Ukraine spoke of 489,870 dead or wounded soldiers from Russia. (cs)
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