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Military operation in Ukraine

Zelensky says 55,000 Ukrainian troops killed since start of special military operation

Many more soldiers remain missing in action, Vladimir Zelensky admits

MOSCOW, February 5. /TASS/. Vladimir Zelensky said on Thursday that Ukraine had lost about 55,000 people killed since 2022, but also acknowledged that a large number of people remain missing.

"In Ukraine, the official number of dead soldiers on the battlefield, whether personnel or mobilized, is 55,000," UNIAN news agency quoted Zelensky as saying in an interview with France 2.

Zelensky added that there are "many people whom Ukraine considers missing."

Several Ukrainian and foreign analysts have repeatedly noted that the official number of casualties cited by Kiev is most likely seriously underestimated. In February 2025, Zelensky said the figure was 46,000 killed, but even then he admitted that there were tens of thousands of "missing in action."

US-based CBS News channel reported in April 2025 that the reported losses in the Ukrainian army amounted to around 100,000 dead. French daily Le Monde reported last summer that Kiev deliberately underestimated the number of dead soldiers, while Ukrainian cemeteries were running short of vacant land.

Back then, Verkhovna Rada lawmaker Tatyana Chernovol pointed out that command positions in the Ukrainian army were occupied mainly by those who sacrificed troops, treating them as cannon fodder.

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Vladimir Zelensky Military operation in Ukraine

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