“The Russians lost probably 70,000 or 80,000 troops in six months,” Call, the deputy defense secretary for policy, told reporters, noting that the number includes dead and wounded.
Russian forces have also lost “3,000 or 4,000” armored vehicles and may lack precision-guided missiles, including air-to-ground and sea-based missiles, he said. “This is particularly significant because the Russians did not achieve any of Vladimir Putin’s goals at the start of the war,” the US official continued.
“They have made some progress in the east, albeit very little in recent weeks,” he noted. “But this came at an extraordinary cost to the Russian military, given the quality of the Ukrainian military and the international aid they received. Kahl acknowledged that Ukrainian forces also suffered heavy casualties, but gave no figures.
Kiev reported at least 10,000 of its troops dead and 30,000 wounded. According to an unnamed military source, the Ukrainian army has grown from 170,000 active-duty soldiers and 100,000 reservists at the start of the war on February 24 to 300,000 to 350,000 troops.
Before the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, Western estimates estimated that some 150,000 to 200,000 Russian troops were stationed on Ukraine’s borders.
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