Russia Has Lost Almost 90% of Its Prewar Army, U.S. Intelligence Says

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Source: The Wall Street Journal., via MSN

The Wall Street Journal

Russia Has Lost Almost 90% of Its Prewar Army, U.S. Intelligence Says

Story by Warren P. Strobel • 41m

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Russia Has Lost Almost 90% of Its Prewar Army, U.S. Intelligence Says
© Provided by The Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON—The war in Ukraine has devastated Russia’s preinvasion military machine, with nearly 90% of its prewar army lost to death or injury, and thousands of battle tanks destroyed, according to a newly declassified U.S. intelligence assessment shared with Congress.

The intelligence assessment, according to a congressional source, says that 315,000 Russian personnel have been killed or injured since the February 2022 invasion, or 87 percent of Moscow’s prewar force of 360,000. ... Russia has also lost nearly two-thirds of its tank force, or 2,200 out of its 3,500 preinvasion stock, the source said.

While it is widely known that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military has sustained vast losses in Ukraine, the assessment provides new details about the extent of those setbacks. ... The assessment was being made public as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visits Washington to lobby for continued U.S. military assistance. Despite a major counteroffensive this year, Kyiv has been unable to claw back large chunks of its territory occupied by Russia.

The U.S. has not released recent estimates of Ukrainian casualties, nor has the government in Kyiv. But Ukraine, with a significantly smaller population than Russia, has also lost tens of thousands of troops to death and injury, officials have acknowledged.

Matthew Luxmoore contributed to this article.

Write to Warren P. Strobel at [e-mail]

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/russia-has-lost-almost-90-of-its-prewar-army-u-s-intelligence-says/ar-AA1lotmt