Zelensky's adviser: Over 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the war.

This is a rare case that Ukrainian officials give figures for war victims and they are much lower than Western estimates.

The new figures were delivered late last night by Mykhailo Podolyak, senior adviser to President Zelensky. According to him, the number of wounded troops is higher and the number of civilian casualties is “significant”.

“We have official figures from the General Staff, we have official numbers from high command, and they reach 10,000 to 12,500-13000 killed,” said Mr. Podolyak in a television interview.

The Ukrainian Army has not confirmed the numbers. The last time Ukrainian officials talked about the figures was in late August, when the leader of the armed forces said about 9,000 troops had been killed. In June, Mr. Podolyak said that as many as 200 soldiers were being killed every day in some of the most intense fighting.

On Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said initially the number of Ukrainian troops killed was 100,000, but then her office corrected the comments, saying this figure included the wounded.

Last month, U.S. Chief of Staff General Mark Milley said that by that time they were killed, or injured about 40,000 Ukrainian civilians and “over 100,000 Russian soldiers”. He added that the figures for the Ukrainian Army could be similar.

The UN Human Rights Office, in its recent weekly update on Monday, said it had recorded 6,655 civilians killed and 10,368 injured, but has acknowledged that its report includes only victims confirmed by the office itself and that the actual figures could be much higher.

Russian forces continue missile attacks on infrastructure and air strikes against Ukrainian troops' positions, the Ukrainian General Staff said on Friday, adding that Moscow's military offensive has focused on several cities, including Bakhmut and Avdivkas, key targets for Russia at the birth of the country.

The Ukrainian president's office reported on Friday that at least three civilians were killed and 16 were injured in Ukraine over the past 24 hours and that Russian forces had attacked nine regions southeast of Ukraine using heavy artillery, rockets and aircraft.