Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
The estimate is higher than other estimates of the death-ratio.
In January 2026, the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) published a report called Russia’s Grinding War in Ukraine.
In it, the analysts estimated that Russia had suffered nearly 1.2 million casualties during the four years of war at the time, with an estimated 325,000 of the casualties being deaths.
Half a year has passed since the report was published, and the war in Ukraine continues to rage. So how many casualties has Russia suffered now?
Well, we can’t know for sure, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has revealed the estimated Russian casualties and deaths – and if they are confirmed, it shows that the Russian invasion has become even more deadly in 2026.
Staggering human cost
In a new interview with Fox News, Zelenskyy reported that Russia has suffered roughly 1.6 million military casualties since launching its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Out of those, about 700,000 Russian troops have died on the battlefield.
This is significantly higher than the most recent estimates from CSIS, as the center wrote in early July that as many as 450,000 Russian soldiers had been killed.
Heavy Ukrainian losses as well
Ukraine has also paid a painful price. Zelenskyy revealed that at least 50,000 Ukrainian service members have lost their lives, while nearly 400,000 have suffered injuries in action.
In addition, a large number of Ukrainian soldiers remain unaccounted for.
The new figure for fallen Ukrainian troops is notably lower than the 55,000 count Zelenskyy publicly shared back in February. He did not offer an explanation for the difference between the two estimates, leaving observers to wonder about the shift.
Battle for initiative
In the interview Zelenskyy insisted that Moscow has failed to turn its massive human losses into decisive military success.
In his view, Russian forces currently lack the momentum needed to secure a breakthrough. That shortfall comes even as Moscow takes aggressive steps to restock its military ranks.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin recently signed a formal decree to increase active military strength by 25,000 personnel. Those specific troops are being assigned to build dedicated military construction units.
