Recent reports from the BBC and independent Russian outlet Mediazona indicate that approximately 70,000 Russian soldiers have died since the start of the invasion of Ukraine. This figure is based on publicly available information, including official statements, media death notices, social media announcements, and cemetery records.
The BBC noted, "We have identified the names of 70,112 Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine, but the actual number is believed to be significantly higher." The analysis acknowledges that some families may not disclose their relatives' deaths, and does not account for casualties among militia forces in Russian-occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Previously, the same outlets had estimated the toll to be around 66,000 in mid-August. Additional analyses by Mediazona and another independent site, Meduza, suggest that the true military death toll could be as high as 120,000, based on official inheritance data.
In Russia, the military death toll is treated as a state secret, while Ukraine has been similarly reticent about its own losses, likely to avoid demoralizing the public after more than two and a half years of conflict. Earlier this year, President Volodymyr Zelensky estimated Ukrainian military deaths at around 31,000, though many analysts believe the actual figure is significantly higher.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the war has resulted in a total of one million casualties among soldiers from both sides. A confidential Ukrainian estimate from early this year suggested that around 80,000 Ukrainian troops had died, with an additional 400,000 wounded. Western intelligence estimates of Russian casualties vary widely, with some suggesting nearly 200,000 dead and around 400,000 wounded.
