Ukraine Reports Record 38,940 Russian Troop Losses in May

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry announced on June 1 that Russian troop losses in May reached 38,940, marking the highest monthly figure since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. The previous record of 29,970 was set in December of last year when Russian forces suffered significant casualties during the battle for the town of Avdiivka in eastern Donetsk region.

The Defense Ministry classifies losses as including those who are killed, wounded, missing, or captured. Although Ukraine’s figures have not been independently verified, they are consistent with Western estimates of Russian casualties. Last month, Ukraine declared that Russia’s total losses had exceeded 500,000.

Leo Docherty, British minister of state for the Armed Forces, stated in late April that the UK estimates Russian losses to be over 450,000. “We estimate that approximately 450,000 Russian military personnel have been killed or wounded, and tens of thousands more have already deserted since the start of the conflict,” Docherty said in parliament.

A US estimate reported on December 12 put the total at 315,000. On the same day, the Ukrainian figure was 340,650.

A May 31 report from UK Defense Intelligence indicated that reported losses averaged 1,200 per day during May, the “highest reported since the start of the war.”

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry also claimed a record number of 1,160 Russian artillery systems destroyed in May. According to a graph posted by the ministry on X (formerly Twitter), the previous highest number of destroyed Russian artillery pieces — 976 — was recorded in March.

“It’s another record. 1,160 Russian artillery systems were destroyed in May. It’s the biggest number of artillery losses in two years of the war,” the Defense Ministry stated, adding that the Ukrainian forces continue to “transform Russian weapons into scrap metal.”

These figures highlight the increasing intensity of the war and the substantial losses incurred by Russia.