On Sunday, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy revealed that 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers had lost their lives in the full-scale Russian invasion over the past two years, marking the first official figure released in over a year.

Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv, Zelenskiy refrained from disclosing the number of wounded, citing concerns about aiding Russian military planning.

Zelenskiy emphasized, “31,000 Ukrainian troops have been casualties in this conflict. It is not 300,000, not 150,000… (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is spreading falsehoods… Nonetheless, this represents a significant loss for us.”

Since the close of 2022, Ukraine had not provided a specific count of military losses.

In late 2022, presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak stated that 13,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed since the invasion on February 24, Reuters reported.

The topic of battlefield casualties remains delicate in Ukraine, as the nation seeks to reform its approach to mobilizing civilians for the army to rebuild its forces following last year’s unsuccessful counteroffensive against Russian forces.

In August, a New York Times report, citing U.S. officials, suggested a Ukrainian death toll approaching 70,000, while also noting potential Russian losses of up to 120,000 troops during the conflict.

President Zelenskiy informed reporters that 180,000 Russians had lost their lives in the ongoing conflict.

Russia, in contrast, does not disclose its military losses, considering such information classified. Both sides consistently characterize the other’s military losses as substantial.

Written by B.C. Begley