Russia has lost 500,000 soldiers killed in Ukraine since 2022, UK military says

Russia has suffered 500,000 soldiers killed in its full-scale war against Ukraine since February 2022, the Chief of the UK Defence Staff, Admiral Rich Nighton, said on Friday.

Speaking on Sky News, Admiral Nighton said total Russian casualties — including both killed and wounded — were estimated at approximately 1.5 million military personnel. He noted that the vast majority of these losses occurred after January 2023, reflecting the grinding attritional warfare that has defined the conflict.

The figures represent the UK government's official intelligence assessment and are significantly higher than Russia's own publicly acknowledged losses.

Earlier, Estonian military intelligence noted that Ukraine had struck Russian industrial facilities nearly 3,000 kilometres from the front line for the first time, reaching areas Moscow had considered a safe rear.