Ukrainian President Says Nearly 9,000 Russian Soldiers Killed

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According to the ABC report on the 2nd, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a televised speech that nearly 9,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since Russia took military action against Ukraine.

He claimed that in Nikolayev in southern Ukraine, the Russian army had to use dozens of helicopters to evacuate dead and wounded soldiers.

Zelensky appealed to the Russian army: "Ukraine doesn't want to be covered with Russian bodies. Tell your commanders if you don't want to die, go back where you came from."

However, the Ukrainian casualty figures stand in stark contrast to those reported by Russia. The Russian Defense Ministry said earlier on Wednesday that 498 Russian servicemen had been killed and 1,597 wounded since the military operation began.

According to CNN, two U.S. officials familiar with the latest intelligence said on March 2, local time, that Russia's current military losses are lower than those of Ukraine. Russia lost about 3 to 5 percent of its tanks, planes, artillery and other military assets inside Ukraine, while Ukraine lost about 10 percent in combat power.

On February 27, the Russian side acknowledged for the first time in the announcement that the Russian army had suffered casualties. The Russian Ministry of Defense issued a notice saying that Russian military personnel suffered casualties during the special military operation, but did not disclose details, but said that the number was far lower than the Ukrainian side. According to the report, personnel from both Russia and Ukraine were captured by the other side. The briefing did not mention specific casualties or the number of prisoners. The Russian Defense Ministry also referred to the mass surrender of Ukrainian troops, saying that Russia had guaranteed their safety and promised to allow them to go home to be with their families.