Journalists identified the names of more than 70,000 Russians who died in the war against Ukraine

The number of Russian servicemen killed in the war in Ukraine exceeded 70,000. This was announced by Mediazona and the Russian service of the BBC, which are conducting a name-by-name count of losses. Researchers clarify that these are only those who died, whose names could be established from open sources, and the real number of casualties may be much higher.

More than half of all those killed by February 2022 were not related to the army. About 20 percent of all those killed are volunteers. From October 2023, the increase in losses among volunteers began, and from September of this year they began to die more than other categories of war participants, including mobilized and former prisoners.

Journalists note that the average portrait of a Russian fighter has recently changed. “If in 2022 the typical serviceman whose death was confirmed by the BBC was about 21 years old and he was a contract worker who served in elite units: special forces, airborne forces or marines, today men are increasingly going to the front in aged 40, 50 and even 60 years, most often without combat experience and special training,” they note.

The BBC and Mediazona together with a team of volunteers keep lists of the dead, focusing on reports from open sources: mass media, statements of local administrations, posts of relatives on social networks and data from cemeteries. The military experts interviewed by them assume that 45% to 65% of all the dead fall into the field of view of journalists.

The names of other media and the administration may not be disclosed. In addition, the bodies of a significant number of soldiers may be buried at the site of death in Ukraine or may remain on the battlefield. Taking into account such estimates, the journalists believe, the real number of dead on the Russian side may be in the range from 107,864 to 155,804 people.

At the beginning of this week, the Wall Street Journal, citing American intelligence sources, estimated the death toll on the Russian side at 200,000. The publication estimated Ukrainian losses at 80,000 killed.

Russia and Ukraine do not disclose losses in the war. The last time an accurate Russian official estimate was given was in September 2022, when Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced 5,937 dead military personnel, these data were immediately called significantly underestimated by researchers. In Ukraine, an official estimate was given for the last time in February 2024, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared 31,000 dead.