Confirmed Russian Military Fatalities in Ukraine Surpass 90,000

The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has resulted in a significant toll on Russian military personnel, with verified reports indicating that the number of Russian troops killed has exceeded 90,000. This assessment comes nearly three years after the Kremlin initiated a full-scale invasion, according to an independent analysis conducted by the BBC's Russian service in collaboration with the Mediazona news outlet.

These organizations compile casualty figures using publicly accessible information, including official military statements, obituaries, and social media activity. The Russian government has largely refrained from commenting on its military losses, referring to the conflict as a "special military operation."

According to the report, approximately 23% of those who lost their lives were soldiers who enlisted under military contracts after the onset of the invasion in 2022. Notably, more than half of the deceased had no previous affiliation with the Russian military or National Guard (Rosgvardia) prior to the conflict.

In 2024, the average age of the fallen Russian soldiers was reported to be 36, which marks an increase compared to the earlier years of the war. Among the casualties, 23% were identified as volunteer fighters, 17% as contract soldiers, another 17% as convicted prisoners, 11% as mobilized soldiers, and nearly 3% as private mercenaries.

Regional analysis reveals that the highest confirmed casualty figures come from the republics of Bashkortostan and Tatarstan, where the verified death toll stands at 3,932 and 3,804 respectively. The city of Moscow and its adjacent areas report 3,673 fatalities.

BBC Russia and Mediazona caution that their verified counts likely represent only about half of the true death toll, estimating that the actual number of Russian military fatalities could range between 138,500 and 200,000. Furthermore, these figures do not take into account the casualties among fighters from annexed regions in southeastern Ukraine, where an additional death toll of 21,000 to 23,500 is estimated.

In terms of broader military casualties, Western and Ukrainian intelligence sources have projected that Russia's total losses--including those killed, wounded, and missing--are between 600,000 and 700,000 as of October. However, some analysts express skepticism regarding these figures, suggesting that they may be significantly overstated.