In almost a year of fighting, the war in Ukraine has caused nearly 180,000 killed or wounded in the ranks of the Russian army, and 100,000 Ukrainian sidewithout counting 30,000 civilians killedaccording to calculations released this Sunday by the head of the Norwegian army.
“Russian losses are approaching 180,000 soldiers killed or wounded,” said the Norwegian chief of staff, Eirik Kristoffersenin an interview with the TV2 network, without specifying the origin of these figures.
Norway, a country bordering Russia, has been a member of NATO since its founding in 1949.
“Ukrainian losses probably go beyond 100,000 killed or wounded. Furthermore, Ukraine records 30,000 civilian deaths in this dreadful war,” the Norwegian general added.
Russia and Ukraine have not given reliable balances of their losses for months.
In November, US Army chief Mark Milley had claimed that the Russian army suffered losses of more than 100,000 killed or wounded, with a balance similar “likely” from Ukrainian side.
These figures cannot be verified from an independent source.
Despite heavy losses, “Russia is in a position to continue (this war) for a long time,” the Norwegian chief of staff added on Sunday, citing Moscow’s mobilization and weapons production capabilities.
“What is most worrying is how long Ukraine will be able to keep Russian aviation out of the war,” since this has been possible “thanks to Ukrainian anti-aircraft defenses.”
Most of the Russian bombing in recent months has been with long-range missiles.
The Norwegian general asked to quickly supply tanks to Ukraine, a matter for now held back especially by Germany.
Despite urgent appeals from Ukraine and several European countries, Germany on Friday refused to supply its Leopard tanks to kyiv.
