Zelenskyy reveals 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed fighting against Russia

Kremlin spokesperson says Russian forces would continue fighting until Kyiv makes necessary ‘decisions’ to end the war.Published On 5 Feb 2026The number of Ukrainian soldiers killed on the battlefield as a result of the country’s war with Russia is estimated to be 55,000, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, adding that a “large number” were also missing.President Zelenskyy’s remarks on Wednesday came in the run-up to the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and amid crucial ceasefire talks in Abu Dhabi, where negotiators are trying to end Europe’s largest conflict since World War II.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Zelenskyy seeks 50,000 Russian ‘losses’ a month to win the Ukraine warlist 2 of 3Ukraine receives bodies of 1,000 soldiers from Russialist 3 of 3Russian shelling kills seven in Ukrainian market, clouding Abu Dhabi talksend of list“In Ukraine, officially the number of soldiers killed on the battlefield – either professionals or those conscripted – is 55,000,” said Zelenskyy, in a prerecorded interview with France 2 TV.Zelenskyy, whose comments were translated into French, added that on top of that casualty figure was a “large number of people” considered officially missing.The Ukrainian leader did not give an exact figure for those who are still missing.Zelenskyy had previously cited a figure for Ukrainian war dead in an interview with the United States television network NBC in February 2025, saying that more than 46,000 Ukrainian service members had been killed on the battlefield.In the middle of 2025, the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, estimated that close to 400,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed or wounded since the war began.Last month, the Ukraine" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="10589" data-entity-type="organization">United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported that Russian attacks had killed 2,514 civilians and injured 12,142 in Ukraine in 2025, almost a third higher than the number of casualties in 2024.