Russia loses more than 900 elite military personnel in Ukraine – BBC

UKRAINSKA PRAVDA – THURSDAY, 1 SEPTEMBER, 11:35

Media have confirmed the deaths of more than 900 Russian elite military specialists in Ukraine, including special forces, marines and paratroopers.

Source: BBC (Russian Service)

Details: In particular, the BBC confirmed the death of 151 servicemen of the GRU special forces [The Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formerly the Main Intelligence Directorate]; almost one in four of them was an officer (22%).

245 officers of the Rosgvardiya [The National Guard of the Russian Federation, or Rosgvardiya, is the internal military force of Russia] are also known to have been killed. Most of them were part of special purpose units (special forces units, SOBR [The Special Rapid Response Unit] and riot police), with almost one in four of them holding the rank of officer. At least 16 of the dead owned the maroon beret, which is a symbol of the special forces’ elite.

Open sources also state that about 20 FSB and FSO [ Federal Protective Service of the Russian Federation] officers died in Ukraine.

According to open data, the 331st Guards Airborne Regiment from Kostroma suffered the greatest losses among paratroopers: more than 80 officers died, including the regiment commander. 14 servicemen were confirmed to have perished in the 45th Guards Special Forces Brigade, the most elite detachment of the Airborne Forces.

The 810th brigade, which is based in occupied Crimea, suffered the greatest losses among the Marines. At least 56 people are known to have been killed, including two brigade commanders.

The BBC also reports the deaths of 67 military pilots, including co-pilots and flight mechanics. The article states that crews of combat aircraft and helicopters are the elite of any army in the world, and the training of one sniper pilot can take 15-17 years.

According to the BBC, referring to Western and Russian military experts, the combined military units of the Russian army were not ready for the assaults. Thus, the Russian special forces units, marines and paratroopers had to face tasks that are typically set for the infantry.

According to the experts cited by the BBC, the Russian Federation will find it difficult to compensate for the loss of all these specialists.

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