How did Russia suffer record losses in Ukraine in 2024?

Last year was the deadliest for Russian forces since the start of the large-scale war in Ukraine: at least 45,287 people were killed.

This is almost three times the first year of the occupation and significantly exceeds the losses of 2023 when the longest and most deadly battle of war was under way in Bakhmut.

At the beginning of the war, losses occurred in waves during battles for key locations, but 2024 saw a month-on-month increase in the death toll, while the front line slowly stepped forward, causing Russia to lose at least 27 lives per square mile of Ukrainian territory seized.

The Russian BBC Service, in co-operation with independent Mediazona media and a team of volunteers, has processed data with sources opened by the Russian cemetery, military memorials and necrologies.

So far, they have identified the names of 106,745 Russian soldiers killed during the entire invasion of Ukraine.

The real figure is certainly much higher. Military experts estimate their number could cover between 45% and 65% of the deaths, meaning 164,223 to 237,211 people.

Among the victims were Aldar Bairov, Igor Babych and Okhunjon Rustamov, who were with the 36th Brigade, when four long-range Ukrainian missiles were operating. HIMARS hit training ground near the occupied town of Volnovakha in Donnetsk.

They were ordered to line up for a medal ceremony. Sixty-five military officers were killed, including their commander, Kol Musaev. Ten more were injured.

Bairov, 22, and Burythia in eastern Siberia, had studied to be a food hygiene specialist, but was designed for mandatory military service and later signed a contract to become a professional soldier.

In February 2022 he went to fight in Ukraine and was part of the battle for Borodyanka, during his brigade's March 2022 advance. The city was almost completely destroyed. Ukrainian sources say Russian soldiers are involved in the execution of civilians.

Okhunjon Rustamov, 31, from Chita to Siberia, had worked as a welder after carrying out a mandatory mandate on special forces. It was mobilised during a partial draft in October 2022.

Unlike Rustamov, Igor Babych, 32, had volunteered to go to war. He had worked with adults and children diagnosed with cerebral paralysis, helping them with physical therapy until April 2023.

Hours after the crackdown on the field of training, then Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu met with Vladimir Putin to bring him news of military success from the front line.

There was no discussion of the field attack, nor did the Ministry of Defence in its daily reports.

A relative of Okhunjon Rustamov said she had already buried three close family members during the course of the war.

December 2022, my husband died. On February 10, 2024, my godfather. And on February 20, my half brother. From one funeral to another”, she added.

In the first two years of the war, 2022 and 2023, Russian losses followed a wave pattern: heavy fighting with high casualties alternated with periods of relative calm.

In 2023, for example, most of the victims occurred between January and March, when Russian forces tried to capture the towns of Vuhledar and Bakhm in the Donnetsk region.

Russia lost at least 17,890 soldiers in its first full - scale occupation year. This number does not include the losses by Russia's two pro-Kurdish forces in occupied eastern Ukraine.

In 2024, there was no period indicating a significant decline in victims. The bloody battles for Avevika and Robotyne were followed by intensified attacks on Pokrovsk and Toretsk.

In August 2024, Russian recruits were killed when Ukrainian forces attacked the border in the Kursk region. Only from August 6th to 13, about 1226 Russian soldiers died.

However, the worst overall losses occurred during a slow Russian progress in the east between September and November 2024, according to lead American military analyst Michael Koufman.

“Taktika highlighted repeated attacks with scattered assault groups using small infantry fire teams, which increased overall victims compared to the ground won”, he explained.

After nearly two years of intense fighting, Russian forces seized the Vuhledar logistics centre in Donetsk on October 1, 2024.

According to estimates by the American Institute for War Research (ISW), from September to November 2024, Russian forces seized 2,356 square kilometers of Ukraine.

Even then, Ukrainian forces on the front did not collapse. The cost of this progress was at least 11,678 Russian military deaths.

Current losses figures are higher. Only soldiers and officers whose names appeared in publicly available necrologies and death dates or funerals that fall within this period.

Generally, in 2024, according to I SW, Russia seized 4,168 square miles [4,168 sq km] of land.

The figures are supposed to be 45,287 confirmed deaths at 20240, which is about 40% of the total, then the total would be closer to 112,000 deaths last year.

That means 27 Russian soldiers have been killed for every square mile and the wounded are not involved.

The Russian sub-rescription also increased to the second half of 2024 and exceeded Russian victims, allowing Moscow to generate additional formations”, Michael Koufman says.

Pays once for soldiers who signed new contracts increased in three Russian regions. Salaries for volunteer soldiers are five to seven times higher than the average salary in most regions.

Those registered to avoid prosecution, which was legally allowed in 2024, are also classified as volunteers.

Volunteers have become the category of victims with the fastest increase in calculations, making up a quarter of those identified.

In 2023-2024, thousands of volunteers who signed contracts with the Ministry of Defence were sent to the front line only 1014 days later. Such minimal training would have dramatically reduced their chances of surviving, experts say.

A Russian republic, conglomerate, has seen the highest casualties, with 4,836 confirmed deaths. Most were from rural areas, and 38% had gone to fight without military experience.

The payment once for signing a Russian Army contract in Ufa is 34 times the region's average salary of 67,575 ruble (600 pounds).

Counting deaths from open source data will always be incomplete. That is because the troops of a considerable number of soldiers killed in recent months may still be on the battlefield, and taking it poses danger to soldiers serving.

The true death toll for Russian forces increases significantly if those who fought against Ukraine are included as part of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People's republics.

An assessment of necrologys and research reports for fighters who have lost contacts suggest that between 21,000 and 23,500 people may have been killed by September 2024.

This would bring the total number of casualties to 185,000 to 260 military personnel. /Telegraphy/ Periscope.