Kiev, Dec 2 (IANS) A top government official in Kiev has revealed that up to 13,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since Russia waged its ongoing war on February 24.
Speaking to Ukrainian media on Thursday, Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, said: “We have official evaluations by the General Staff, official evaluations by the commander-in-chief (Zelensky), and they range from 10,000 to 12,500- 13,000 killed,” the BBC reported.
He said that the number of civilians killed could also be “significant”.
Podolyak further suggested that up to 100,000 Russian soldiers had been killed since the invasion began, and that an additional 100,000 to 150,000 had been wounded, or were missing or unable to return to combat.
The Ukrainian military has, however, not confirmed the tally given out by Podolyak.
The latest figures come after General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last month that around 100,000 Russian and 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or injured to date.
But Moscow’s latest update in September said that just 5,937 troops had been killed since the start of the war.
The American General had also noted that between 15 and 30 million refugees have been created since Russia launched its invasion.
The UN has recorded 7.8 million people as refugees from Ukraine across Europe, including Russia.
–IANS
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