Eight Russians die for every Ukrainian soldier since September, says Zelenskyy

The ratio of Ukraine's irrecoverable losses to Russia's has been 1 to 8 since September, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Japanese news agency Kyodo News.

"From the start of the Kursk operation and the figures we have, since September, Ukraine's losses to Russia's are one to eight. Eight Russians die for every one Ukrainian," Zelenskyy said.

The president added that Russia does not value human life.

"When they started this meat grinder, they began throwing people in, despite not being able to achieve results," he stated.

Zelenskyy clarified that he could not share specific figures regarding Ukraine's losses in the war.

"I would share if I could. Someone recently, I believe in the American press, reported that 80,000 Ukrainians have died. But I want to tell you, no – it's fewer. Much fewer," the head of state stressed.

He noted, however, that the Ukrainian government does not know the exact number of people, including military and law enforcement personnel, who have died on temporarily occupied territories.

On November 9, the British defense secretary stated that Russia's army suffered record losses in October, with 41,980 killed and wounded.

As of December 2, 2024, Russia's military losses have exceeded 740,000, according to data from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.