Politics

Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine has led to nearly two million military casualties, including those killed, wounded, or missing, as reported in a study released on Tuesday by a US think tank. The majority of these losses have been suffered by Russian forces, which have seen up to 325,000 killed out of an estimated total of 1.2 million casualties since the invasion began nearly four years ago, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). The think tank noted that “no major power has faced such high numbers of casualties or deaths in any conflict since World War II,” adding that “Russian forces are making progress on the battlefield at a notably slow pace.” Ukrainian forces have also experienced significant losses, with casualties estimated between 500,000 and 600,000, including 100,000 to 140,000 killed from February 2022 to December 2025. CSIS stated that the combined casualties for both Russian and Ukrainian forces could reach as high as 1.8 million, potentially hitting two million by spring 2026. In February 2025, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned to a US news outlet that Ukraine had lost almost 46,000 troops since 2022, a number that experts believe is too low, while many others are either missing or have been captured. The BBC’s Russian service, along with the Mediazona outlet, which uses publicly accessible information like death announcements, has identified over 163,000 Russian soldiers killed in four years of conflict, acknowledging that the real figure is likely higher. The war has also severely impacted civilians, with United Nations monitors reporting more civilian deaths in Ukraine in 2025 than in any year since 2022. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that over 2,500 civilians were killed and more than 12,000 were injured in 2025. Since 2022, the UN has verified nearly 15,000 civilian deaths, but the actual number is believed to be much higher.