Putin predicted to starve the West this winter if he loses Ukraine conflict

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This week, the US has shed some light on the crushing losses Russia has endured during the invasion of Ukraine so far. Colin Kahl, The Pentagon’s under secretary of defence for Policy, Colin Kahl, claimed on Tuesday that between 70,000 and 80,000 Russians have lost their lives since the start of the conflict in February. He told reporters: “There’s a lot of fog in the war but I think it’s safe to suggest that the Russians have probably taken 70,000 or 80,000 casualties in less than six months. “Now that is a combination of killed in action and wounded in action and that number might be a little lower, a little higher, but I think that’s kind of in the ballpark.”

The Kremlin does not release figures on the deaths its military has suffered, and even tries to silence those that do.

In March, The Russian Komsomolskaya pravda newspaper published a report that said 10,000 soldiers had died, but this was quickly deleted.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith, a Tory MP, tells Express.co.uk that the Russians have suffered big losses.

He added that, without the Kremlin’s propaganda, Russian people would be furious about the lives lost.

Sir Iain said: “I don’t know what losing looks like, but I do know that right now they must be regretting and rueing the day that they tried to set out to do this.

“The Russians have lost tens of thousands of people, incalculable amounts of equipment destroyed, and if it were not for the propaganda in Russia, mothers and fathers of sons that have been killed would already be demanding that they withdraw.

“Never before was a more stupid decision taken by one particular man, with what is quite clearly a lust of power.”

Sir Iain added that Russia’s “disastrous” attack on Ukraine should serve as a warning to other dictators hoping to carry out similar objectives.

He continued: “It has been a disaster for them, let’s not beat around the bush. The invasion of Ukraine has been an unmitigated disaster for Russia.

“That should be a lesson to all dictatorships – be careful what you wish for.

“At the end of it all, people believing in their country will defend to the end what they know to be the most important thing, their homeland.”

Russian state TV has promoted the Kremlin’s line on the conflict since it began in February.

Last month, BBC journalist Francis Scarr shared a clip which showed one report from Russian state TV discussing the benefits of losing a son in the war.

A Russian couple is shown looking at a picture of a man who is presumably their son.

The narrator then says: “Like his grandfathers and great-grandfathers he fought against fascism.”

The father of the fallen soldier is then shown next to a white car. He said: “In memory of our son, we bought a nice new car.”

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Bizarrely, the narrator then explains that the car “was bought with what people call ‘coffin money’, but what’s officially a ‘lump sum allowance for the family of the deceased’.”

He added: “His father says that Alexei dreamt of having a white car, just like this one. It’s first trip is to the cemetery.”

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs, also shared the clip on social media, accusing Russian media of having a flippant attitude to the death of young men.

He tweeted: “A Russian soldier was killed in Ukraine. His family used the ‘casket money’ to buy a new car.

“Russian TV filmed a story about it, showing them driving to the cemetery for the first time. They highlighted the car, not caring about the dead person.”

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