Russian general claims only 1,400 Russian troops have died in Ukraine


Russian Colonel General Sergei Rudskoi, deputy head of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, said Friday that 1,351 Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine and 3,825 have been wounded, The Associated Press reported.
This report is far lower than estimates from NATO — which on Wednesday said Russian forces have likely suffered between 7,000 and 15,000 fatalities since the invasion began on Feb. 24 — and the United States, which placed Russian military deaths at around 7,000. In an address to the nation on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said "more than 14,000" Russian soldiers had been killed.
Rudskoi's report also contradicts numbers provided by the Russian Defense Ministry. On Sunday, the pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda published an article citing a Russian Defense Ministry report that 9,861 Russian soldiers had been killed — a number more than seven times higher than the figure Rudskoi provided Friday — and over 16,000 wounded. The casualty figures were stealth edited out of the article four hours after it was published.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Komsomolskaya Pravda is reportedly part of a select group of Russian news outlets known as "our guys" whose news editors have yellow phones on their desks that link directly to the Kremlin.
AP notes that Rudskoi's report "did not appear to include the Moscow-backed separatists fighting in eastern Ukraine."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Is Prince Harry owed protection?
Talking Point The Duke of Sussex claims he has been singled out for 'unjustified and inferior treatment' over decision to withdraw round-the-clock security
By The Week UK
-
What's behind Russia's biggest conscription drive in years?
Today's Big Question Putin calls up 160,000 men, sending a threatening message to Ukraine and Baltic states
By Genevieve Bates
-
Is the 'coalition of the willing' going to work?
Today's Big Question PM's proposal for UK/French-led peacekeeping force in Ukraine provokes 'hostility' in Moscow and 'derision' in Washington
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Russia's spies: skulduggery in Great Yarmouth
In the Spotlight 'Amateurish' spy ring in Norfolk seaside town exposes the decline of Russian intelligence
By The Week UK
-
Can Ukraine make peace with Trump in Saudi Arabia?
Talking Point Zelenskyy and his team must somehow navigate the gap between US president's 'demands and threats'
By The Week UK
-
Ukraine: where do Trump's loyalties really lie?
Today's Big Question 'Extraordinary pivot' by US president – driven by personal, ideological and strategic factors – has 'upended decades of hawkish foreign policy toward Russia'
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK
-
Is Europe's defence too reliant on the US?
Today's Big Question As the UK and EU plan to 're-arm', how easy will it be to disentangle from US equipment and support?
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK
-
Is the British Army ready to deploy to Ukraine?
Today's Big Question The UK 'would be expected to play a major role' if a peacekeeping force is sent to enforce ceasefire with Russia
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
What will Trump-Putin Ukraine peace deal look like?
Today's Big Question US president 'blindsides' European and UK leaders, indicating Ukraine must concede seized territory and forget about Nato membership
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK