- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said 31,000 soldiers had died since the Russian invasion.
- U.S. officials estimate the death toll to be more than twice that number, at about 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers.
- Russia and Ukraine are stepping up efforts to draft more soldiers into the field.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his country had lost 31,000 soldiers since the Russian invasion began two years ago.
This is the first time President Zelenksky has released an official death toll, but it is less than half of previous U.S. loss estimates that estimated about 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, The New York Times said. The paper reported.
“This is a huge loss for us,” Zelensky said at a press conference in Kiev, the newspaper reported. Earlier this month, he said the death rate among soldiers was one Ukrainian for every five Russians. In August, The Times reported that U.S. officials conservatively estimated that both sides suffered about 500,000 casualties.
Meanwhile, both sides are trying to send more soldiers to the battlefield through conscription.
Russia is sending hundreds of thousands of poorly trained soldiers into the field, and it may not even have the appropriate weapons for all of them.
In Ukraine, military recruiters reportedly confiscated passports and even tried to enlist a man with a lifelong mental illness.
February 24, 2024 marks the second anniversary of the Russian invasion. Russian leaders initially thought they would win the war in just a few days. In return, the aggressor nation secured some territorial victories in Bahmut and Avdiivka at the cost of tens of thousands of soldiers. Meanwhile, Ukrainians are calling on the United States and other allies to continue their support, and without continued funding European countries like Poland could become President Vladimir Putin's next target. He warns.
