350 Russian Soldiers Die In One Day; 53,600 Deaths In Total Since War Began

Russia lost 350 troops and a number of armored vehicles and aircraft in one day as the country’s casualties in the invasion of Ukraine exceed 53,000, according to the Ukrainian military.

Combat losses among Russian personnel between the start of the war on Feb. 24 and Wednesday numbered 53,650, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in its most recent casualty report.

Russian losses included 2,180 tanks, 4,665 armored fighting vehicles (AFV), 246 aircraft, 215 helicopters and 1,290 artillery systems, among other pieces of military equipment.

In a previous report on Russian casualties between the beginning of the war and Tuesday, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Russia lost 53,300 personnel, 2,175 tanks, 4,662 AFVs, 244 aircraft, 213 helicopters and 1,279 artillery systems.

Most of Russia’s recent losses were sustained in the direction of Kharkiv and Donetsk in Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian military.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence last released the country’s official death toll from the war in March, claiming at the time that fatalities numbered 1,351.

Independent Russian media outlet Mediazona reported that it has been able to confirm 6,219 Russian military deaths in the conflict as of Friday.

U.S. under secretary of defense for policy Colin Kahl said last month that Russia may have already suffered between 70,000 and 80,000 casualties in the war.

In addition to sustaining high casualties, Russian forces “continue to suffer from morale and discipline issues in Ukraine,” the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense said earlier this month.

“The Russian military has consistently failed to provide basic entitlements to troops deployed in Ukraine, including appropriate uniform, arms and rations, as well as pay. This has almost certainly contributed to the continued fragile morale of much of the force,” the ministry said in a statement.

Despite its mounting casualties in the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, mass military mobilization is currently not on Russia’s agenda, according to a spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russia has launched a recruitment drive to make up for its losses in Ukraine. But the Russian military has been forced to recruit soldiers in homeless shelters and is seriously considering enlisting convicted criminals due to “severe manpower shortages,” a U.S. official who spoke to Reuters on the condition of anonymity claimed.

Russia is also recruiting residents from the country’s Far East region who “are not accustomed to comfort and will easily tolerate the lack of well-established living conditions,” the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense’s Main Directorate of Intelligence said. International Business Times could not independently verify this information.