Over 30,000 Russian servicemen killed in Ukraine war, independent journalists confirm

At least 30,003 Russian servicemen have been killed since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, journalists from the BBC Russian Service and independent Russian media outlet Mediazona have concluded after using open source data to make their calculations. 

Around 1,300 new names, including four officers, were added to the confirmed deaths tally by the journalists in the last two weeks. 

According to the BBC and Mediazona estimates, the deaths of around 5,600 recruited convicts have been confirmed, making them the biggest group among the Russian fatalities. Furthermore, at least 3,200 draftees, 2,900 volunteers, and 2,400 Wagner mercenaries have also been killed in the war.

In July, media outlet Meduza and Mediazona claimed that the number of dead Russian servicemen could in reality stand at over 47,000 people as of the end of May 2023 taking into account excess mortality rates. 

At the beginning of July, independent media outlet IStories estimated the number of Russian servicemen to have been killed since the start of the war in Ukraine to stand at over 18,000 people based on data published by the Russian State Statistics Service.