The names of over 95,000 Russians who died fighting in Ukraine have been verified in a joint investigative project by the BBC's Russia service and the independent media outlet Mediazona, the BBC reported on Feb. 22.
Over 5,000 names have been added to the list of Russian casualties since Jan. 24. The project has been collecting data on losses since February 2022.
While the project confirmed over 95,000 deaths since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, the true death toll is believed to be much higher. Military analysts consulted by researchers estimated that the list likely represents only 45% to 65% of Russia's total casualties.
The current list includes 16,171 Russian convicts who were recruited from penal colonies to fight in Ukraine. The total number of convicts who have died on the front lines is likely much higher. Prisoners could account for a third of Russia's military losses since the full-scale invasion, researchers said.
Russia has been recruiting prisoners for the war in Ukraine since the summer of 2022.
Investigators verified the names of the dead using data from official reports, newspapers, social media, and graveyards.
Russia has not released official figures on its military deaths in Ukraine since September 2022, when the Kremlin claimed only 5,937 personnel had been killed in the war.
President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed on Feb. 15 that nearly 250,000 soldiers fighting for Russia's armed forces have been killed in the war against Ukraine.
Russian forces have suffered heavy losses in recent months amid Moscow's accelerating offensive in eastern Ukraine. Troop losses reached record levels in November and December, with casualties continuing to mount in 2025.
According to Ukraine's Khortytsia group of forces, Russia lost more soldiers fighting in the direction of Pokrovsk, a small city in Donetsk Oblast, than its total losses in the Second Chechen War.
Abbey Fenbert
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