Ukraine Reports Over 1.2 Million Russian Casualties Since 2022

Ukraine’s General Staff of the Armed Forces has reported a staggering 1.2 million Russian casualties since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022, marking a significant escalation in the reported human cost of the ongoing conflict. As of January 21, 2026, Kyiv’s latest figures indicate nearly 1,229,740 Russian personnel have been killed or wounded, with an additional 1,170 losses recorded in the preceding 24 hours alone, underscoring the relentless intensity of fighting on the front lines. This substantial update from Ukrainian authorities provides a rare glimpse into the scale of attrition claimed against Russian forces, occurring at a critical juncture in the war.

Scale of Reported Losses and Equipment Destruction

The comprehensive report from the General Staff, disseminated via its official Facebook page, details not only personnel losses but also extensive destruction of Russian military hardware. Since February 2022, Ukraine claims to have decimated a vast array of Russian equipment. The figures released on January 21, 2026, indicate:

• Tanks: 11,587 (+8 in the past day)
• Armored fighting vehicles: 23,938 (+10)
• Artillery systems: 36,463 (+70)
• Multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS): 1,621 (+3)
• Air defense systems: 1,279
• Aircraft: 434
• Helicopters: 347
• Operational-tactical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs): 112,159 (+1,019)
• Cruise missiles: 4,163
• Ships/boats: 28
• Submarines: 2
• Motor vehicles and fuel tankers: 75,238 (+171)
• Special equipment: 4,049 (+1)

These figures, particularly the daily reported destruction of artillery systems and UAVs, paint a picture of continuous, high-intensity engagements across the front lines. The sheer volume of reported losses in specific categories, such as over 112,000 drones, highlights the evolving nature of modern warfare and the critical role of unmanned systems in reconnaissance and attack operations.

Discrepancies and International Assessments of Russian Casualties

The figures provided by the Ukrainian General Staff stand in stark contrast to the information, or lack thereof, from Moscow. Russia has not published official data regarding its own losses since the initial stages of the invasion. The latest known official Russian figures, dating back to 2022, indicated approximately 5,937 service members killed. This significant discrepancy underscores the challenges in verifying casualty figures in an active conflict zone and highlights the information warfare inherent in modern military engagements.

However, the Ukrainian claims are not entirely without external corroboration, albeit with different methodologies and scopes. Open-source intelligence and volunteer groups, meticulously tracking confirmed fatalities based on public records and social media, have recorded more than 163,606 Russian fatalities as of January 16, 2026. It is crucial to note that these volunteer figures represent confirmed deaths and are widely considered incomplete, as not all casualties become publicly known. Therefore, the Ukrainian General Staff’s figure of 1.2 million, which includes both dead and wounded, aligns more closely with broader expert assessments that account for the full spectrum of personnel removed from combat effectiveness.

International institutions and intelligence agencies have also offered their own estimates, suggesting significant losses on Russia’s side. According to calculations and intelligence reports, the total number of wounded and dead could approach a million. In December 2025, NATO sources emphasized that the total number of dead and wounded in the Russian army could reach about 1.15 million, with daily losses in November 2025 estimated at approximately 1,100 people. While the exact figures vary, the consistent theme across these diverse sources is the immense human cost borne by Russia since the onset of the full-scale invasion.

Ukraine’s Stance on Its Own Losses

In contrast to the detailed daily reports on Russian casualties, Kyiv has largely refrained from publishing precise data on its own military losses, stating that such information would be disclosed after the war concludes. This policy aims to maintain morale and prevent providing tactical information to the enemy. Nevertheless, some figures have emerged. At the beginning of 2025, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated in an interview that since February 2022, Ukraine had suffered more than 46,000 dead and about 380,000 wounded. These figures, while substantial, are considerably lower than the losses attributed to Russia by the Ukrainian General Staff.

Furthermore, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, noted in January 2025 that over the preceding year, Ukraine had managed to reduce personnel losses by approximately 13%. However, he did not provide specific details regarding the absolute numbers of Ukrainian casualties. The limited and sporadic release of Ukraine’s own casualty figures underscores the sensitive nature of this information in wartime, balancing transparency with strategic necessity.

The consistent reporting of such high casualty figures by Ukraine, even while acknowledging the inherent difficulties in independent verification from an active conflict zone, serves to highlight the extraordinary intensity and attrition rates of the conflict. The substantial disparity between Ukrainian claims and Russia’s official silence, coupled with corroborating but varying estimates from international bodies and open-source trackers, underscores the ongoing information war and the profound human toll that continues to define the full-scale invasion.