Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Andriy Melnyk, stated during a Security Council meeting that Russia is already losing the war it unleashed against Ukraine, and that its economy is increasingly being drained by military spending, sanctions pressure, and strikes on its rear areas. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing a broadcast of the diplomat’s speech. According to Melnyk’s estimate, Moscow is losing no fewer than 30–35,000 military personnel each month, and the rate of these losses, he said, already exceeds the Kremlin’s capacity to recruit new contract soldiers.
Demographic and Economic Resources at the Limit
The Ukrainian Permanent Representative emphasized that Russian regions are being forced to offer ever-larger cash payments to encourage citizens to join the army. According to him, vulnerable categories of the population are being drawn into the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces: prisoners, migrants, recently naturalized citizens, and mercenaries. Melnyk linked this to the gradual exhaustion of a country that continues to spend significant resources on the war while simultaneously suffering heavy losses. In his view, it is precisely the combination of these factors that points to a systemic decline in Russia’s military and economic potential.
A Call to Moscow: Look at Your Own Losses
Addressing the Russian side, Melnyk stated that instead of spreading disinformation about the Ukrainian army, “aimed at inciting hatred and division in our society,” the Russian Permanent Representative, Vitaly Churkin [Nebenzia], “might perhaps reflect on the alarming reality within the Russian armed forces.” The diplomat stressed that Russia “is already losing the war it started itself, and will ultimately suffer defeat.”
Contradictory Data
The estimate of Russia’s monthly losses at 30–35,000 military personnel is a claim by the Ukrainian side and has not been confirmed by independent international bodies available in open sources; the Russian delegation at the Security Council traditionally disputes such figures and does not publish comparable statistics. Thus, in the public sphere there exist two non-matching versions: the Kyiv side insists on a sustained excess of losses over replenishment capacity, while the Moscow side does not acknowledge these data. The XAB.info editorial team records both positions and does not treat the cited figures as an independently verified fact.
Context: Negotiations and the Question of a Ceasefire
Melnyk’s speech fits into a broader context of his recent statements at the UN, where he emphasized that “Ukraine’s patience is not limitless” and discussed the possibility of direct negotiations with Russia, as well as calling on the Security Council to adopt a resolution on a ceasefire and the removal of Russia from peacekeeping missions. The statement that Russia “is already losing the war” became one of the sharpest public formulations by the Ukrainian side at the Security Council this year.
