Russia’s losses in Ukraine have reached nearly 1.2 million—equal to its entire pre-war army and several times higher than losses in Afghanistan, or most countri

By the end of 2025, Russia’s total irrecoverable losses in the war are projected to reach 1.2 million—a figure unseen since World War II. Yet in the Kremlin, these unprecedented casualties are met with calm resolve. Russia appears willing to continue the war, losing hundreds of thousands of soldiers each year.

Archived version: https://archive.is/20251218190019/https://united24media.com/war-in-ukraine/russia-has-lost-12-million-troops-in-ukraine-more-than-its-entire-pre-war-army-14361

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

  • TankieTanuki [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    17·
    1 month ago

    I don’t trust any casualty tallies I’ve seen for either side, really—including the 1.7 million for Ukraine that was claimed by those hackers. The real numbers are likely closely guarded. We’ll have to wait for the historians to sort it out 10-20 years from now.

    However, we do have clues as to which country (if any) is facing a recruitment crisis and/or demographic collapse: One side has resorted to stalking men on the streets and press-ganging them.

    the widespread and rising desertion rates from Ukraine’s armed forces only seem to provoke more violent recruitment practices and then civilian protests.

    Many include family members or friends fighting desperately to prevent their loved one being taken against his will.

    It’s beyond dispute; there exist many hundreds of videos documenting the practice. I’ll never forget this mother trying to save her son, nor this man’s scream.

    Many Ukrainians are afraid to leave their homes. Several have died during their encounters with the “recruiters”, some of them choosing to take their own lives with grenades rather than be taken to the front, and some succumbing to injuries sustained while trying to resist.

    Ibid:

    On October 23, Ukrainian Roman Sopin died from heavy blunt trauma to the head after he had been forcibly recruited

    In August, a conscripted man, 36, died suddenly at a recruitment center in Rivne

    In June, 45-year-old Ukrainian-Hungarian Jozsef Sebestyen died after he was beaten with iron bars following his forced conscription

    In August, a conscript died from injuries sustained after he jumped out of a moving vehicle that was transporting him to the recruitment center

    Ukrainians have begun to fight back by killing the recruiters.

    • ryannathans@aussie.zoneEnglish
      3·
      1 month ago

      The “winners” write the history books. It’s unlikely we’ll ever get true answers. Intelligence agencies are all over this waging their own information wars. Narratives spun, and spun again. We’re entering an era where we will no longer even need crisis actors and groups to produce fake materials, where anyone can generate “evidence” typing a few lines into their favourite video generator.

      • DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.socialEnglish
        1·
        1 month ago

        That “truism” is laughed at all by serious historians. Not only do we have plenty of accounts of wars written by the losers, we have accounts of wars known only from the loser perspective, and in a modern bureaucracy there’s so much paper trail the burden is shifting through all the evidence.

        History isn’t written by the victors, it’s written by the survivors.