46,230 Russian Troop Losses in September as Moscow Prepares 120,000 New Conscripts

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) reported record Russian troop losses for September 2026, saying 46,230 Russian military personnel were killed or wounded during the month. “This monthly figure set an absolute record for 2026, surpassing the previous peaks recorded during the summer campaign,” the General Staff of Ukraine reported on Telegram.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Russian troop losses reported by Ukraine rose steadily through much of 2026: January – 31,710 February – 26,090 March – 31,960 April – 32,980 May – 33,760 June – 39,290 July – 42,860 August – 42,020 September – 46,230 Ukraine’s Defense Forces reported 326,900 Russian personnel losses during the first nine months of 2026. The General Staff said the September figure was 14,520 higher than in January, representing a 45.8% increase. The General Staff attributed the rising losses to what it described as the Russian command’s inability to achieve its battlefield objectives and the increasing effectiveness of Ukrainian fire strikes. “Every attempt to pressure our positions results in disproportionate casualty losses – both wounded and killed – for the enemy,” the General Staff said. Meanwhile, Russia plans to send approximately 120,000 conscripts into military service this autumn, Colonel General Yevgeny Burdinsky, head of the Russian General Staff’s mobilization directorate, said. Burdinsky added conscripts would begin traveling from assembly points to their assigned units on Oct. 10. He claimed they would not be deployed to occupied Ukrainian territories or to participate in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Other Topics of Interest ISW Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 30, 2026 War in Ukraine - Latest update, key takeaways and map from the Institute for the Study of War on September 30, 2026. More than 140,000 people were drafted for mandatory military service between April and July 2026, Burdinsky said. Russia has operated under a system of year-round conscription since 2026, with recruits drafted throughout the year and sent to their duty stations during the spring and autumn campaigns. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia is intensifying military recruitment and expanding efforts to bring foreign fighters into its armed forces as Moscow struggles to offset heavy battlefield losses. In a Sept. 28 evening address, Zelensky said Russian authorities had begun a new recruitment drive and were seeking to increase the number of foreigners serving in the Russian military. He added that more than 8,000 North Korean soldiers are currently in Russia supporting operations against Ukraine, while another 10,000 are being trained for deployment. “Russia is paying for all of this by various illicit means, and in return, for this help, for the technical assistance by Russia on North Korean territory, there has been set up a production line for Shahed-type strike drones,” Zelensky said. His comments followed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s order to increase the size of Russia’s armed forces by 15,500 personnel, bringing the total authorized strength to 2,441,630, including 1,550,500 military personnel. The order marked the fourth increase in Russia’s military personnel authorized by Putin in 2026. The decree did not mention a new mobilization of reservists. Putin has repeatedly denied that Russia is preparing one, calling reports of a planned mobilization “чушь собачья” (“utter nonsense”) earlier in September. Meanwhile, Russian forces continue to suffer heavy losses in Ukraine. Researcher Ragnar Gudmundsson estimated that Russian forces lost 2,090 personnel on Sept. 28 and 1,960 on Sept. 17 – among the highest daily losses recorded during the war. Gudmundsson estimates that Russia has suffered more than 405,000 combat deaths since February 2022, while total Russian casualties could exceed 1.6 million by mid-November. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.