Media exposes how Russian Military Command masks the numbers of soldiers lost

It also exempts the Russian government from paying compensation to the families of the fallen soldiers.

What is happening?

Russian military leaders are reportedly labeling missing soldiers in Ukraine as “deserters” to downplay the country’s true battlefield losses, according to the independent outlet IStories.

A Strategy to Avoid Paying Compensation

By designating the missing as deserters, the Russian government sidesteps its responsibility to pay compensation to families of the dead.

This bureaucratic sleight of hand denies grieving relatives both financial support and official recognition of their loss.

Casualty Numbers Remain Largely Hidden

Both Moscow and Kyiv rarely publish reliable casualty figures.

While The Kyiv Independent cautions that it cannot independently verify the numbers, Ukrainian estimates suggest Russian losses have surpassed one million since the war began.

Families Turn to the Kremlin for Answers

IStories reports that it has received more than 50 complaints from relatives of missing soldiers.

These families have written directly to President Vladimir Putin’s administration, seeking clarity and justice for their loved ones.

Document Falsification Across Russian Units

The investigative outlet uncovered instances of falsified records in at least 25 military units across 11 regions of Russia.

In many cases, soldiers officially disappeared during missions, only to be later branded as deserters without proper investigation.

A Loophole for Misclassification

Although military law forbids declaring someone a deserter without concrete proof, in reality, mere absence from duty is often enough.

IStories reveals that the rule is regularly abused to reclassify soldiers and reduce the official death toll.

Even the Dead Are Labeled Deserters

Shockingly, IStories uncovered at least one case in which a soldier was listed as a deserter despite having already been buried.

Legal System Flooded With Cases

From January to June 2025 alone, Russian courts handled over 26,000 requests to declare soldiers as missing or deceased—a staggering figure that already exceeds the total number of such cases from all of 2024, according to Mediazona.

Tens of Thousands Branded as Deserters

An earlier report by IStories, citing data from open-source intelligence group Frontelligence Insight, claimed that approximately 50,500 Russian troops were labeled deserters in 2024—many of whom may, in fact, be dead or missing in action.

True Death Toll Likely Far Higher

Joint research by Mediazona and the BBC Russian Service has verified nearly 120,000 Russian military deaths, though analysts stress the actual number is likely far greater.

Ukraine’s General Staff now places Russia’s total military casualties—including wounded and missing—at over 1,050,000.