Russian forces have reportedly experienced one of their deadliest days in months, with steep losses in tanks, armored fighting vehicles and military personnel, according to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The latest figures released by Kyiv on Sunday show a significant uptick in casualties as the fighting continues on the eastern front line and in the Russian Kursk region.
According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, Russia has lost approximately 642,420 military personnel since its invasion in February 2022, with 1,500 soldiers killed in the past day alone. It marks one of the highest single-day troop losses since May.
Ukrainian soldiers take position in a trench in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, on June 18, 2024. Russian forces have reportedly experienced one of their deadliest days in months, with steep losses in tanks, armored fighting vehicles and military personnel, according to Kyiv.
Andriy Andriyenko/ASSOCIATED PRESS
In terms of military equipment, Kyiv’s latest numbers suggest heavy damage inflicted on Russian armor.
Since the start of the invasion, Russia is estimated to have lost 8,768 tanks, with 22 destroyed over the past 24 hours.
The number of destroyed armored fighting vehicles has risen to 17,222, with 52 vehicles eliminated during the same period.
These numbers represent the largest one-day spike in tank and armored-vehicle losses reported by Kyiv in several months.
Artillery systems have also taken a significant hit, with 63 Russian artillery units destroyed in the past day. The total number of artillery systems Moscow has lost now stands at 18,333.
These losses follow a similar pattern seen earlier in the week. On September 20, Ukraine reported 1,340 Russian troop deaths and 20 tanks destroyed in a 24-hour period, bringing the war’s total death toll to around 639,480 at the time. Kyiv’s numbers have continued to climb, indicating sustained heavy fighting.
Getting an accurate number of troop losses is difficult as both sides do not release official estimates and Moscow has not updated its death toll since September 2022 when it said just under 6,000 of its soldiers had been killed.
While Kyiv’s figures dwarf Western estimates—such as a BBC report suggesting Russian casualties to be around 70,000—the broadcaster also said that the actual numbers were likely to be “considerably higher.” Their estimate, which relied on verified obituaries and media reports, is likely low due to the challenges of gathering accurate data from the battlefield.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that 200,000 Russian troops had been killed and 600,000 wounded, citing unnamed Western intelligence estimates.
The WSJ report also noted Ukrainian losses, while considerably lower, stood at 80,000 killed and 400,000 wounded.
The recent surge in Russian casualties comes as Ukrainian forces continue their incursion into Kursk, as well as continuing fighting in eastern Ukraine.
Russia has so far failed to push Ukraine’s forces out of Kursk, and has been forced to evacuate its towns and divert troops from the front lines to halt Kyiv’s advance.
Newsweek reached out to the Russian government via online form and Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry via email for comment on Sunday
