U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley has claimed that Russia has suffered «more than 100,000» casualties, including military dead and wounded, as part of the invasion of Ukraine, before adding that the numbers among the Ukrainian ranks «are probably similar.»
«We are talking about well over 100,000 Russian servicemen killed or wounded. The same probably on the Ukrainian side,» Milley said during an event at The Economic Club of New York, where he said the invasion was «a tremendous strategic mistake,» U.S. television network CNN reported.
Thus, he has pointed out that Russia will pay «for years and years» for this «strategic mistake» and has argued that there could be a chance to negotiate an end to the conflict if the front lines stabilize during the winter. «If there is a chance to negotiate and achieve peace, it must be seized,» he explained.
Milley reiterated that, should negotiations fail, Washington will continue to deliver weapons to Ukraine, while stressing that «there must be a mutual recognition (in Ukraine and Russia) that a military victory in the true sense of the word may not be something possible by military means.»
Finally, he indicated that there are indications that Russia has begun a withdrawal in the Kherson region, as announced on Wednesday, although he pointed out that the withdrawal of more than 30,000 military personnel to the western bank of the Dnieper River could take days or even weeks.
«I think they are doing it to preserve their forces and re-establish defensive lines south of the river, but that remains to be seen. Right now, there are early indications that they are doing what they say they are doing,» Milley concluded.
Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski said in a CNN interview that Russia’s announcement could be a strategic decision to regroup its forces, before adding that Moscow has lost «ten times» more military personnel than Kiev since the start of the invasion.
