Russian Casualties Suffer Unprecedented 65% Fatality Rate, As Armor Used Up

Russian soldiers are suffering a 65% fatality rate among casualties, a figure unprecedented in modern warfare. The reasons are that the Kremlin has largely run out of armored vehicles, which leaves its troops exposed - and because its medical care, notoriously unreliable in the best of circumstances - is considered a too-expensive afterthought by commanders focused on how to please the Kremlin while lining their own pockets. 

Data reveal that, in addition to declining quantities of armor, the Russians are also running low on artillery, especially barrels, which are difficult to manufacture because they require special steel. JL

Espreso Global reports:

November 2025 battlefield data reveals that Russian forces are suffering a 65% fatality rate among casualties—a stark anomaly, virtually unprecedented in modern warfare - driven by the Kremlin's shift away from armored vehicles to infantry assaults. Russia's territorial progress came at 64 casualties per square kilometer captured, one of the lowest efficiency rates of the year. Russian military degradation is also reflected in tank losses which plummeted to 71 units in November because Moscow has far fewer tanks to lose. Artillery systems showed their lowest loss rate since December 2023, attributed to the exhaustion of Soviet-era stockpiles rather than improved Russian tactics. 

An analysis of November 2025 battlefield data reveals that Russian forces are suffering an unprecedented 65% fatality rate among casualties—a stark anomaly driven by the Kremlin's shift away from armored vehicles to infantry-heavy assaults

Military expert Oleksandr Kovalenko stated this, Obozrevatel reports.

Russian military losses in Ukraine showed a troubling pattern last month, with 31,190 personnel killed, wounded, or captured—but what's raising alarm bells among military analysts is the composition of those casualties. More than 20,000 were fatalities, marking a record-high proportion that experts say is virtually unprecedented in modern warfare.

The dramatic shift in casualty ratios stems from Russia's evolving battlefield tactics. Facing severe equipment shortages, Moscow has abandoned the armored assaults that characterized earlier phases of the war. Instead, Russian forces now rely heavily on dismounted infantry or troops transported in light, unarmored vehicles—a change that has proven devastatingly costly when these units come under Ukrainian fire.

"The minimized use of armored vehicles in combat zones means when attacks fail, survival rates plummet," the expert notes. Light transport vehicles offer virtually no protection compared to tanks or armored personnel carriers, turning what might have been wounded soldiers into fatalities.

 

Despite these mounting losses, Russian forces managed to capture 482 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory in November—nearly double the gains from September and October combined. The most significant breakthrough came in the Huliaipole direction in the Zaporizhzhia region, where Russian advances exceeded 200 square kilometers. However, this territorial progress came at a staggering cost: roughly 64 casualties per square kilometer captured, one of the lowest efficiency rates of the year.

The equipment picture tells an equally stark story of Russian military degradation. Tank losses have plummeted to just 71 units in November—not because Russian armor has become more survivable, but because Moscow simply has far fewer tanks to lose. The analysis contrasts this with October 2023, when Russia lost 531 tanks in a single month, or January 2025's loss of over 330 tanks.

"Russia has transformed from a country with one of the world's largest tank fleets into one fighting on motorcycles and civilian cars," the report states bluntly.

Artillery systems showed their lowest loss rate since December 2023, with 617 units destroyed in November. Analysts attribute this to the exhaustion of Soviet-era stockpiles rather than improved Russian tactics. The assessment predicts that barrel artillery shortages, already emerging in 2025, will reach crisis levels in 2026.