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According to Ukraine, the Russian army recorded its highest losses in November since the start of the invasion in February 2022. But Russia also advanced 725 km² on the ground, an unprecedented territorial gain.
According to the Ukrainian general staff, in November 2024 the Russian army would have suffered the heaviest losses in personnel and equipment since the start of the invasion in February 2022. The press release, published on December 1, reported 45,720 Russian soldiers killed or seriously injured. A record figure which is equivalent, according to Ukrainian estimates, to the conditional loss of three motorized rifle divisions of the Russian army.
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Ukrainian forces also announced that they had damaged 899 armored fighting vehicles, which corresponds to approximately four motorized rifle divisions, at an estimated cost of $500 million. In terms of artillery, 884 artillery units would have been destroyed, the equivalent of 49 artillery divisions unable to continue the fight. The cost of these artillery losses is estimated at $700 million.
A Russian advance of 725 km2 in November
In total, the Russian army would have lost, by November 2024, more than $3 billion in military equipment – an amount that exceeds the material losses recorded in September and October. Yet, despite these colossal losses, the Kremlin continues to massively finance the war effort, fueling an unprecedented spiral of spending.
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Especially since these Russian losses did not prevent significant territorial gains for Moscow. According to an AFP analysis based on data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Russian army advanced over 725 km2 in November, a figure that had not been reached since March 2022. Despite record human and material losses, Russia still manages to mobilize resources to put pressure on the Ukrainian defense lines.