Russian military casualties in Ukraine have reached 1.4 million

From the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 through June 2026, the total losses of Russian troops—including those killed, seriously wounded, and missing in action—reached approximately 1.4 million people. Of this number, at least 450,000 Russian servicemen were killed in action. 

These figures are cited in a new analytical study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). According to expert estimates, in the first half of 2026, Russia’s monthly losses ranged from 30,000 to 34,000 personnel, which began to exceed the rate of mobilization of new contract soldiers—approximately 27,000 recruits per month. 

The ratio of battlefield casualties between Russia and Ukraine in the first half of 2026 rose sharply to 8:1 (compared to 2:1 or 3:1 during most of the previous period of the war). Analysts cite the widespread and effective use of unmanned systems by the Ukrainian Armed Forces—particularly drones equipped with artificial intelligence—as the main factor behind this surge.

To provide historical context, the study’s authors note that the number of Russian military personnel killed in Ukraine is already more than four times the total combat losses of the United States in all wars since World War II combined (approximately 100,000 people), and is more than nine times greater than all losses suffered by the Soviet Union and Russia in armed conflicts since 1945. CSIS emphasizes that since the end of World War II, no major world power has suffered even remotely similar losses in any war, leaving Russia with a “grim and unprecedented historical record.”

Despite such colossal human casualties, the command of the occupying army has failed to break through the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ defensive lines, and the Russian offensive has now virtually come to a halt. The enemy’s average rate of advance is one of the lowest in military conflicts over the past century, amounting to about 50 meters per day in the Kostiantynivka area, 70 meters near Pokrovsk, and 90 meters near Sloviansk. Moreover, a negative trend was recorded in the spring of 2026: in April and May, the Russian Armed Forces’ net territorial losses amounted to about 400 square kilometers, meaning the invaders lost more ground than they were able to capture. As of today, approximately 118,000 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory (roughly 20% of the country’s area) remain under Russian occupation, of which 75,000 square kilometers were seized after February 2022.

Source: CSIS.