Ukraine War Casualties Approaching 500,000

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

KYIV/MOSCOW (Worthy News) – The number of battlefield casualties in Ukraine is approaching nearly 500,000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers, US officials say, underscoring the brutality of Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War Two.

Russia’s military casualties are approaching 300,000, the officials claimed, with as many as 120,000 killed in action.

Last November, General Mark Milley, the chair of the joint chiefs of staff, said 100,000 troops on each side had been killed or wounded.

But The New York Times newspaper quoted officials saying that fierce fighting near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, where Russia sent convicts in human wave attacks, and an “unsuccessful” Ukrainian counteroffensive against fortified Russian positions have led to significant casualties on both sides.

The figures suggest a more than doubling the number of dead since November.

Ukraine was said to have nearly 70,000 killed and 100,000-120,000 wounded, but Kyiv has declined to confirm those figures amid a new recruitment drive to replenish forces.

Russia’s standing army is between two to three times larger than Ukraine’s, and the country has a larger population from which to replenish its frontline soldiers.

However, Russia also suffered relatively more casualties in left because of logistical issues and outdated military tactics and even the use of untrained convicts, experts say.

Ukraine has about 500,000 troops, while Russia has more than 1.3 million, the newspaper estimated, including reserves and Wagner paramilitaries, according to official estimates.

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