“The recent publication of the famous militar portal Deepstate has attracted a lot of attention. Analysts reported that in more than 1000 days of fighting, since November 2022, the Russian Federation was able to capture about 6000 km² of Ukrainian territory. This is only 0.96% of the total area of the state in internationally recognized borders. This figure is obviously represented as proof”, – WRITE ON: ua.news
The recent publication of the famous militar portal Deepstate has attracted a lot of attention. Analysts reported which, since November 2022, was able to capture about 6000 km² of Ukrainian territory in more than 1000 days of fighting. This is only 0.96% of the total area of the state in internationally recognized borders. This figure, apparently, is represented as proof of the relative inefficiency of the offensive efforts of the enemy, and the highest Ukrainian political echelon, including President Vladimir Zelensky and OP Head Andriy Yermak, began to actively use this narrative in public speaking both domestically and in the international stage.
Formally, the authors of the analysis are absolutely right: mathematically thousands of days of war led to territorial changes, which, at first glance, seem insignificant. However, as the classic said, “there are three types of lies: ordinary lie, great lie and statistics.”
The point is not whether this figure is correct – the correct one – but in what it hides. While public discussion is focused on the relative size of the lost area, it ignores the catastrophic price that society and the state pay for every square kilometer that occupies the aggressor.
How much and what did Ukraine cost this 1% of the territory? UA.news political observer Nikita Trachuk He understood the question.
Human losses in war with the Russian Federation: a number that has no price
It is almost impossible to determine the exact number of military casualties in the ongoing war. However, public grades But the reports of international analytical centers give an idea of the terrible scale of the tragedy, which stands for an abstract 1%. According to different sources, the losses of the Ukrainian side are significant. President Zelensky in February 2025 rated There are more than 46 thousand killed and about 380 thousand wounded. However, the expert community criticizes these figures.
Independent Western Analytical Centers give different information. There is a significant difference between official statements and external estimates, which is related to a strategic information policy aimed at supporting the fighting spirit. However, it is obvious that even lowering the exact figures that we do not know, the loss of Ukraine can still be described as “very large”. Every citizen in his city or village can come to any cemetery and see that the number of graves under the yellow-blue flag grows every year almost in geometric progression.
In addition to the military, the war permanently takes away the lives of peaceful Ukrainians. Large-scale rocket-arable Shelling lead to a constant increase in the number of victims among civilians. According to the UN monitoring mission, at least 13.8 thousand dead and 35,000 wounded civilians were recorded since the beginning of a full -scale invasion by July 2025. In reality, this figure is multiple, which is directly recognized as the same UN.
Of particular concern is the dynamics of these losses. June 2025 became the moon with record The number of civilians over the last three years: 232 dead and 1343 wounded. This trend emphasizes that the war on exhaustion, even if it does not bring rapid territorial achievements, allows the enemy to systematically destroy the rear, killing the civilian population and destroying cities that are not on the line of contact.
One of the most serious consequences of war is Demographic catastrophe . Abroad, according to various estimates, are from 5 to 10 million Ukrainians. Millions have become forced migrants (IDPs) within the state.
This mass migration, especially women of reproductive age and children, has deep consequences for the future. The longer the war lasts, the lower the likelihood of returning these people. Remaining abroad, they assimilate, the baby goes to local schools, and life is re -built – far from the Motherland, in the best conditions. In addition, the war has led to a significant decrease in birth rates and mortality increases, which leads to an annual decrease in the population by over 300,000 people.
It turns out that the loss of 1% of the territory is accompanied by the loss of a large part of human capital-the basis of any state. These are not just temporary difficulties, but a long -term and systemic threat. If territorial losses can be theoretically compensated, demographic is almost irreversible. We are talking a lot about the preservation of territories, but very little – the preservation of those who live in these territories.
Material exhaustion: destroyed cities and lost money
According to the dry statistics of territorial losses, there are also completely physically destroyed cities of Donbass, which became the epicenter of the most fierce battles. For the sake of scanty territorial achievements, the enemy destroys entire regions.
Mariupol, Volnovakha, Severodonetsk, Marinka, Avdiivka, Soledar, Bakhmut, The time of the ravine and dozens of other settlements either transformed into ruins or physically erased from the face of the earth. In literally, where people once lived, now only the replacement mountains of construction debris under which the bodies of the dead lie. The same story – in Kharkiv, Kherson, Zaporozhye, Sumy region …
What does the “capture” of a city that no longer exist? It is not a new resource or strategic bridgehead, but a demonstration of barbaric Russian force, which is not considered with any loss – neither human nor material. It is also the price that Ukraine pays not only the territory, but also the existence of its cities. This destruction does not stop on the front line, but spreads deep into the country through massive shelling, causing tremendous damage.
The price of destruction caused by war goes far beyond hundreds of billion dollars. According to various estimates, a total The cost of reconstruction But the reconstruction of the country, if the war is over now, will be from $ 500 billion to $ 1 trillion. This amount is many times higher than Ukraine’s GDP.
These constantly growing figures show that the war is not only a battle for the territory, but also a purposeful campaign for economic exhaustion. Every new rocket stroke, even if it does not change the front line, adds billions of dollars to the total account. This process of slow but continuous destruction shows that the price of one percent is a constant fee that increases and threatens the future.
Socio-political value of war
The war for exhaustion checks not only the army but also the whole society for strength. At the beginning of a full -scale invasion, Ukraine demonstrated the Bezp Rense consolidation and cohesion when tens of thousands of people voluntarily came to military enlistment offices. However, 2022 ended three years ago. Prolonged war leads to fatigue and a significant increase in tension in society.
One of the most acute manifestations of this fatigue was the forced street mobilization – in the media it is called “beading”. Methods of mobilization measures and regular violence by the CCC staff often contradict the law, undermining confidence in state institutions. This coercion, which is a direct reaction to the lack of volunteers, creates a deep split.
The consequence is a significant increase in the number of unauthorized abandonment of the military unit (HSF) and desertion . Journalist and veteran Vladimir Boyko, referring to the power structures, claims More than 17.5 thousand soldiers officially went to the HSC in July 2025. Western media are often written about the same. The total number of such cases is already considered hundreds of thousands.
It is not just statistics, but a direct consequence of the moral and physical exhaustion of the military who have been on the front for years without rotation and rest. This destructive cycle – exhaustion leads to desertion that requires more rigid mobilization, which, in turn, increases social tension – is one of the most dangerous consequences of a long war.
In the end, we should not forget that we have a war for exhaustion. Although it is accompanied by slow territorial changes, its main risk is the accumulation of systemic problems that can break out one day, creating the effect of snow avalanche.
Slow promotion of the enemy can give the illusion of relative, bad, wrong, but still stability – but in fact it is a symptom of a hidden process that risks to end with a sudden and catastrophic collapse. If in 1000 days of war the price of “one percent” is so high, it is scary to imagine what the price will be if suddenly something happens one day and this percentage will increase.
Summarizing, the narrative of “1% of the occupied territory” is very dangerous. Although mathematically the figure is correct, it can mislead and seems to ignore the price that the Ukrainian people pay every day in this war for exhaustion. The real value of this percentage is measured not in square kilometers, but in tens – if not hundreds – thousands of lost lives of military and civilians, in destroyed cities and damaged infrastructure, in an economic and demographic disaster.
The question that Ukraine faces is not how much a percent of the territory has been lost, but how high the price of the people and the state can pay further. The war for exhaustion, even if it does not lead to rapid territorial losses, constantly destroys human and material potential, increasing the risk of catastrophe.
In the light of this terrible price, any opportunity to achieve a peaceful decision through diplomacy should be used. Because if we agree that even one percent is unspeakably high, we need to think about what the price will be if this figure suddenly becomes much higher.