BERLIN, December 21. /TASS/. The Ukrainian armed forces lose about 800 troops every day as killed in action (KIA) or wounded in action (WIA) in the conflict zone against Russian forces, retired German Bundeswehr (Army) Colonel Ralph Thiele wrote in an op-ed for Focus magazine.

According to him, Ukraine’s "daily losses stand at about 800 troops" on average. "It means that over 20,000 new soldiers need to be recruited every month to replace those killed and wounded," Thiele noted.

He also pointed out that the Ukrainian armed forces needed additional reserves to ensure the rotation of troops in the combat zone. The expert stressed that the situation in Ukraine had turned into a conflict "of attrition backed by artillery." In this regard, he said that ammunition supplies were better organized in the Russian army. In particular, Thiele cited NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s remark that Ukraine fired 4,000 to 7,000 artillery shells in a day, while in contrast Russia fired some 20,000 per day.

Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny said in an interview with authoritative UK publication The Economist in early November that the conflict in Ukraine was at a stalemate and Ukrainian forces were unable to achieve a breakthrough on the frontline. According to him, a trench warfare-heavy conflict of attrition could drag on for years.

The Ukrainian army had been conducting unsuccessful offensive attempts from early June until recently. According to Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, Kiev lost more than 125,000 troops and over 16,000 pieces of equipment in six months. Russia has repeatedly emphasized that Kiev’s offensive has failed, as Ukraine achieved no significant results. In recent weeks, the West and Kiev have repeatedly said that the "counteroffensive" was not successful enough.