According to a recent estimate by the British Ministry of Defense, up to 50 percent of Russia’s elite paratroopers may have been killed or injured during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This assessment is based on statements made by Colonel-General Mikhail Teplinsky, commander of the Russian airborne troops. He said more than 5,000 wounded paratroopers had returned to the front after treatment in the past 17 months. According to the Kyiv Post, the Kremlin tried to hide this speech, which was published on the Russian Defense Ministry’s TV channel Zvezda.

Teplinsky’s comments echo other reports of high casualties among elite Russian forces. The Kremlin originally expected to win the battle for Kiev within days. But plans to take control of Hostomel Airport and from there capture Kiev fell through. According to the Kyiv Post, the Russian VDV forces were involved in the first frontline battles and suffered heavy casualties.

Numbers difficult to verify

Ukrainian forces used tactics in the eastern Bakhmut sector to capture strategically important heights and positions previously held by Russian paratroopers. These tactical maneuvers were widely reported by the Kyiv Post.

The actual loss figures for both sides are difficult to verify. Both Kiev and Moscow are keeping exact figures secret. However, a British Defense Secretary recently claimed as many as 250,000 Russian soldiers may have been killed, injured or missing since the invasion began. The Kyiv Post reported that this figure matches Ukrainian estimates of nearly 250,000 “liquidated employees.”