Putin reeling as Russia loses ‘3,000 troops in three days’ in fierce fighting
Russian forces have lost 3,010 soldiers as well as 32 tanks in just three days as Vladimir Putin’s military suffers a massive blow on the frontlines.
The unverified numbers were posted to Facebook by Ukraine’s General Staff who vowed to “beat the occupier!” at the end of each post. Kyiv said Russia suffered 1,120 casualties on December 7, 990 on December 8 and 900 on December 9 – it didn’t specify the amount of wounded vs dead.
Many of these losses are likely to have occurred around the embattled city of Avdiivka which Moscow has been attempting to storm since mid-October with devastating consequences.
The town in eastern Donetsk has become a focal point of the fighting with Russia launching massive human wave attacks that have, so far, failed to capture significant amounts of territory.
However, Moscow is continuing its onslaught in the area, according to a spokesman for the Defence Forces of the Tavria region, Oleksandr Shtupun.
He said: “The enemy continues to try to advance. Almost all of his activity is concentrated in the Avdiivka and Maryinka areas. More than 90 percent of the clashes of the past day took place there.”
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) – a think tank covering the conflict – said on December 7 and 8 that Russian forces had made advances in the area.
ISW said: “Geolocation footage released on December 8 shows that Russian troops have advanced to the treatment facilities south of Krasnohorivka (5 km northwest of Avdiivka).”
The think tank also said that the number of Russian casualties in Ukraine could be outpacing the Kremlin’s ability to mobilise more troops.
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In an update on December 7, it said: “Russian and Ukrainian officials have reported that Russian crypto-mobilisation efforts produce roughly 20,000 to 40,000 personnel a month, a rate that could be lower than Russia’s current casualty rate in Ukraine.
It added: “Ukrainian officials reported in spring and summer 2023 that Russia recruits roughly 20,000 personnel through crypto-mobilisation efforts per month.
“Ukrainian officials have reported that the Russian force grouping along the Kharkiv-Luhansk Oblast front has roughly not changed since summer 2023, suggesting that the commitment of new personnel to the area is offsetting Russian losses but not increasing the strength of that grouping.”
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