The US confirms Russia has lost over half a million soldiers

On October 9th, a senior U.S. defense official revealed that Russia has suffered over 600,000 in Ukraine since Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022. 

While speaking to reporters during a phone briefing on the conflict in Ukraine, Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder and an unnamed U.S. defense official revealed that Moscow suffered over 600,000 since the beginning of the invasion. 

The U.S. defense official was discussing the importance of U.S. military and financial security assistance to Ukraine when they revealed the Ukrainians had “inflicted more than 600,000 casualties on Russian forces” according to a White House transcript.

According to the U.S. defense official, September of 2024 was also the most deadly month of the war for Moscow. “Russian forces sustained more casualties in terms of both killed and wounded in action than in any other month of the war," the official said.

“Russian losses, again both killed and wounded in action, in just the first year of the war exceeded the total of all Russian losses — Soviet losses in any conflict since World War II combined,” the defense official added. 

The New York Times reported that U.S. assessments have estimated Russia may have lost as many as 615,000 soldiers in the conflict, 115,000 of which have been killed, and 500,000 wounded. This estimate is in line with other third-party analyses. 

On October 7th, the UK Ministry of Defence reported in its daily update on the war that Russia has likely suffered over 648,000 casualties since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. 

The UK Defence Ministry update also noted that Russia had the highest daily loss rate of soldiers in September 2024 since May 2024. The Kremlin lost 1,271 soldiers per day throughout September, which was new due to activity on the front from both sides. 

“The increase in the casualty rate since May 2024 is almost certainly due to the extension of the combat zone to include both Kharkiv and Kursk military operations, and increased intensity along the frontline,” the Defence Ministry update explained. 

“Russian forces highly likely continue to attempt to stretch Ukrainian forces by utilizing mass to overwhelm defensive positions and achieve tactical gains,” the Defence Ministry added. 

The update also noted that Russia was likely to continue to suffer over 1,000 casualties per day on the front throughout the rest of 2024 despite the onset of winter. However, despite the challenges facing Moscow, it is still recruiting soldiers. 

The New York Times reported in its analysis of the situation that the Kremlin was still recruiting between 25,0000 and 30,000 new troops a month, a situation that has helped Russia avoid another round of mass mobilization according to one senior U.S. official. 

The senior U.S. defense speaking alongside Major General Ryder noted that Putin was “trying to avoid a mass mobilization because of the effect that would have on Russia’s domestic population.”

“At this point, he has been able to significantly increase the pay of these voluntary soldiers, and he has been able to continue to field those forces without doing a major mobilization,” the senior U.S. defense official added. 

According to The Hill, the United States has not disclosed its official assessment of Russian losses in the war since it projected Russia had suffered 310,000 casualties. This occurred in December 2023 following the release of a declassified report. 

The senior U.S. defense official who spoke alongside Major General Ryder also revealed Russia has lost 32 naval ships and that the Ukrainians have destroyed more than two-thirds of Moscow’s pre-war tank inventory, forcing Russia to break Soviet-era and World War II-era tank stockpiles. 

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