Russia stands to lose 1.8 million troops if it takes four oblasts in Ukraine, the UK's army chief said.Moscow has designated Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia as its own territory.
But its current attrition rate means it will take five years to succeed, Gen. Sir Roly Walker said.
Gen. Sir Roly Walker said he'd based his estimation on the "current rate of attrition of dead and wounded" faced by Moscow's forces in Ukraine, according to UK media.
He'd been answering questions on Sunday at the 2024 Land Warfare Conference run by the British think tank Royal United Services Institute.
"That puts them probably well north of 1.5 million people — casualties — to achieve that with untold billions of lost equipment," said Walker, per The Times of London.
"If they carry on as they are, it would probably take the Russians five years to grind their way to their minimum objectives of the four oblasts," he added, referring to Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia.
Here are the top political news stories for today.
@SalamiJerryUnity2yrs2Y
They can afford to lose 20 million people, and are willing to do so, my only thing is... make them have to.
Even if you lose, it will weaken them for perhaps an opportunistic nation to take advantage.
@MerePopulistDemocrat2yrs2Y
The Russian military is far more willing to absorb big losses in troops and equipment in order to reduce the chances of civilian casualties. The Russians have overwhelming firepower, and they could do to Ukraine what Israel is doing to Gaza, but the Russians are not nearly as evil as the Israelis.
@AloofMuesliLibertarian2yrs2Y
1.8 million?
The key to a successful Psychological Operation is that it has to contain a little truth, and it has to be believable. You can't rely on the most gullible to carry your plan, or it fails. This is embarrassingly amateur.
@D1plom4tCoatiGreen2yrs2Y
UK military keeps coming up with hysterical analysis, findings, projection, intelligence. At this rate, it will soon replace Biden and Kamala as the World's laughingstock.
A pure land grab from the beginning. Starting with trying to take the whole country (Kiev), and then “settling” for 4 oblasts. Google John Sullivan's interview "Negotiating With Putin". He was the US ambassador to Russia prior to Russia’s invasion. The man dealt directly with Russian negotiators. He says flat-out that the Russians had no intention of negotiating seriously. Negotiations were a “charade”. It was not NATO expansion that triggered the war, but rather Putin's vision of a reconstituted Russian empire. Russia could not tolerate a “a democratically elected government” on Russia’s doorstep. Read the interview for yourself.
@RightsBagelsLibertarian2yrs2Y
It was a land grab, by the USA and its puppet regimes. Putin was the most pro-Western leader in Russia since Peter the Great. After the collapse of the Soviet Union a cabal of internationally connected “Russian” oligarchs became fabulously wealthy at the expense of ordinary Russians. Greedy Americans and Europeans were envious of Russia’s vast natural resources and they wanted their share of the wealth, like the “Russian” oligarchs. Ukraine was built up militarily by the West in order to attack Russia and force regime change in Russia so that Russian natural resources could be extracted by greedy foreign wannabe oligarchs.
@ZestyPoliticalDemocrat2yrs2Y
Just tell the truth. The future in Russia is bleak, so this special military operation is to eliminate their own countrymen that would become the resistance that overthrows the Putin regime.
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
Loading the political themes of users that engaged with this discussion
Loading data...
Join in on more popular conversations.
