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Russia losing 6,000 troops a month in ukraine
Published : Saturday, 29 August, 2026 at 11:14 AM
Observer Online Report
Russia is losing an average of 10,000 troops every month in the war in Ukraine, according to a report by the British daily The Guardian, citing Western officials.
One official told The Guardian, “The information available to us indicates that the Russian military is recruiting 1,000 new soldiers every day, which means an average of 30,000 to 31,000 recruits per month. On the other hand, the Russian military is losing an average of 36,000 troops every month across various fronts. That means they continue to face a shortfall of around 6,000 troops every month.”
The official claimed that the persistent monthly troop shortfall is causing growing concern not only within the Russian military but also for President Vladimir Putin. He told The Guardian, “This troop shortage is making Putin increasingly anxious, which is why he is ordering attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and civilians.
Since the beginning of July, he has launched more than 360 missiles at Ukraine and has exploited weaknesses in Kyiv’s defenses against ballistic missiles. It is clear that Moscow wants to destroy Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this winter in an attempt to break the country’s morale.”
“One reason for this strategy is that Putin has limited options for recruiting additional soldiers to make up for the enormous losses suffered on the battlefield.”
Western officials believe that mobilizing additional troops would pose a major political and economic risk. According to them, following the last military mobilization in the autumn of 2022, nearly one million Russian citizens-many of them highly skilled-left the country. Although some eventually returned, the number of returnees was less than half the number who had left.
Ukraine has repeatedly attacked Russian targets related to the oil industry, creating fuel shortages, but it has also repeatedly appealed to its allies for greater assistance, both in offensive missiles and in air-defense systems.
Andy Burnham made his first foreign trip as prime minister to Kyiv this week. He promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that the United Kingdom would help Ukraine develop long-range cruise missiles.
Burnham is expected to present his case for protecting Ukraine from Russian attacks at the United Nations General Assembly, which will be held in New York next month.
In response, Russia has repeatedly threatened retaliatory strikes, including attacks on British military targets both inside and outside Ukraine.
However, Western officials said that although the Russian threats are very real, the situation has not changed and their assessment remains that “Putin wants to avoid direct confrontation with NATO at all costs.”
After years of tensions over Russia’s refusal to recognize Crimea as Ukrainian territory and Kyiv’s efforts to join NATO, the US-led military alliance, in violation of the terms of the Minsk agreements signed in 2015, Russian forces launched a military operation in Ukraine on the orders of President Putin in 2022. The operation is still ongoing.
-MT
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Editor : Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury
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Published by the Editor on behalf of the Observer Ltd. from Globe Printers, 24/A, New Eskaton Road, Ramna, Dhaka.
Editorial, News and Commercial Offices : Aziz Bhaban (2nd floor), 93, Motijheel C/A, Dhaka-1000.
Phone: PABX- 41053001-06; Advertisement: 41053012; 01793317829, 01550707291, E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Online: email: [email protected] 41053014; 01550707297 Advertisement: 01550707296
