Russia Military Deaths - In any war, there are units that distinguish themselves and others that are symbols of failure. The 331st Guards Parachute Regiment had hoped to be the first, but it now represents a distortion of Russia's rapid war plans.
The regiment's commander, Colonel Sergei Sukhrev, was killed in Ukraine on March 13, and was posthumously awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation medal. At the funeral, Deputy Defense Minister General Yuri Sadovenko said that the colonel "lived for the future, for the future of our people, for a future without Nazism".
Russia Military Deaths
Casualties of Russian forces are not reported in Russia itself, but using open source material, have pieced together the advance story, and found that at least 39 other members of the elite Regiment 331 were killed.
Russia Confirms Casualties In Ukraine For The 1st Time
They were part of a column advancing from Belarus to Ukraine, led by the Russian Air Force, known by the VDV. His presence underscores the priority of his goal - progress in the capital, Kyiv.
This advance quickly dragged into a disastrous stalemate in the districts on the outskirts of Kyiv that soon became synonymous with the viciousness of war: Bucha, Irpin and Hostomel.
A video emerging online of the battle shows a combat vehicle used by the Russian Air Force with the "V" symbol.
The video found shows several damaged light armored vehicles of the VDV, which were abandoned after the attack of the Ukrainian special forces. In another, several Russian Air Force vehicles have apparently been abandoned.
More Russians Consider Costs Of War In Ukraine As Casualties Mount
The men of 331 consider themselves chosen from the Russian army. In a video posted online last May, the general told soldiers of the 331st Parachute Regiment that they were "the best of the best." The unit served in Russia's 2014 intervention in the Balkans, Chechnya, and the Donbas region of Ukraine, and regularly participates in Moscow's Red Square parade.
331 was also a demonstration of Russia's policy of replacing national service soldiers with contractniki - contract professionals. It is understandable why the generals should play such a prominent role in this attack.
A comment on the mourning post Major Sergei Krylov reads: "We are proud of you, thank you for supporting peace. Hero of Russia Major Krylov. RIP "- This post is no longer public.
From the beginning of March, reports of casualties of the 331st began to circulate. It took time to bring the body back to Kostroma, where it lies, 300 km northeast of Moscow.
Ukraine Says Dozens Of Russian Soldiers Killed In The South
As the funeral began, somber conversations erupted on social media. A memorial wall on V'Kontakte - Russia's equivalent of Facebook - promises "eternal memories" and features images of candles.
A woman who said she was the wife of Warrant Officer Sergei Lobachev wrote: "Seryozha, my most trusted, loving and caring wife. Now you are in heaven and you will protect us from there! You will always be in our hearts and you. Be a hero true to me forever!"
While many posts seem to accept the Kremlin's explanation that the war is being waged against Ukrainian fascists, some also express concern about the lack of reliable information.
On the memorial wall of Sergeant Sergei Duganov, a woman wrote: "No one knows anything. The 331st regiment is missing. Almost every day, photos of our Kostroma children are published. It sends shivers down the spine." . What happened? When will it end? When will people stop dying?
How Many Russian Soldiers Have Died In The War In Ukraine?
His post was followed by another, which said: "Kostroma has lost many young people, what a tragedy". Others begged: "God, how many more death reports? Have mercy on my children, help them survive, return to their wives and mothers. I beg you, stay!"
Yanosh Leonov partner writes: You are a real hero, you are the best father, a loving and loving husband, a loyal friend and a real fighter.
Talking about war in Russia carries many risks, but there are signs of losing faith in the Kremlin's arguments for war. On the sergeant's warning page, a woman asked: "Why aren't the children of MPs on the front lines? Most of them live in Europe. Children used to die for nothing." Others used the policy to describe President Vladimir Putin, adding that by deciding on "war" he had "sent thousands to their deaths".
 "Russia Military Deaths")
The top Ukrainian comments on the angry posts of Ravshan Zakbayev read: Everyone who steps to occupy our land will be buried in it. Welcome to hell! A later comment read: Eternal memory to you, our hero, our protector. Thanks for everything.(((
Russian Soldiers Killed After Ukrainian Drone Was Shot Down Near Airbase In Russia
On the walls of several V'Kontakte memorials, Ukrainians have posted comments mocking the dead. "Over 15,000 have died and will continue to die as long as they march on our land. No one calls you a stupid savior," read one.
"Alexander, go away you bloody Nazi," the Russian replied to another post. "Our soldiers are real heroes. Russia has never killed civilians and children, which you can't say about Ukrainians."
The anger of the online exchange was nothing but the experience of the VDV troops, who were defeated by Ukrainian artillery, attacks and infantry attacks during weeks of bloody battles.
In this close-quarters combat, he discovered what VDV units had learned before in Afghanistan - that lightly armored vehicles designed to be carried on board did not offer much protection from enemy fire. From the streets outside the Hostomel airfield, to the side of the road in Bucha, or the crossroads in Irpin, the video taken by Ukrainians shows the burning and abandoned vehicles of the air group.
Russia Sees First Ukraine War Casualty On Home Soil
Russian BTR-ZD, BTR-D, BTR-MDM, BMD-2, and BMD-4M VDV vehicles in Bucha. https://t.co/Z6rqTQa7Ag pic.twitter.com/etQPv8fzt1 — Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 15, 2022
This snippet of the call recording also reveals a more fundamental failure. In the devastated area around Kyiv, Russian paratroopers were matched with Ukrainians. And since the defenders in many cases are only local defense or reserve units, that shows a fundamental failure in the training and recruitment system of the VDV.
The Ukrainians have claimed 331 losses, enthusiastically claiming that the regiment was "destroyed". Ilya Ponamarev, a former member of the Russian parliament and opposition figure who now lives in Kyiv, said people there saw the fate of the regiment as "a perfect example of karma".
During the 2014 war in Donbass, the 331st was blamed by the Ukrainians for killing hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers in Ilovaisk, in violation of the ceasefire agreement.
Nato: Up To 40,000 Russian Troops Killed, Wounded, Taken Prisoner Or Missing In Ukraine
However, when the regiment suffered significant losses, the Ukrainian claim that they had been wiped out was an exaggeration. However, it is likely that the 331st Parachute Regiment may have recently been withdrawn from the Ukraine—certainly an unknown element of the VDV task force they had was recorded withdrawing to Belarus on March 29.
For the price of failure, it increases every day. At the time of writing, Newsnight has compiled a list of 39 members of the 331st Parachute Regiment killed in Ukraine. But since none of those deaths were more recent than March 13, it's safe to assume dozens more will emerge in the coming weeks.
Residents in Kostroma said they believed 100 members of the regiment may have been killed. And many families will never get their loved one's body back because it was left on the battlefield.
Even conservative estimates of the casualties we now know, and their dates, suggest that urban losses in a few weeks in Ukraine have exceeded the conflicts in Afghanistan and Chechnya.
The Heavy Losses Of An Elite Russian Regiment In Ukraine
The regiment, marching confidently into February, had acquired a reputation that no soldier could wish for.
So far, 39 soldiers from the 331st Regiment have been confirmed dead: Klim Abramov, Kpl Artem Arbuzov, Oleg Bedoshvili, Captain (Co Cdr) Yuri Borisov, Sr Lt Ilya Chernyshev, Kpl Yuri Degtaryov, Konstantin Dobrynin, Sasha. Duganov, Kirill Fedoseyev, Andrey Kovalevsky, Maj Sergey Krylov, Stanislav Kutelev, Corporal Yanosh Leonov, Sergeant Alexander Limonov, Snr WO Sergei Lobachio, Corporal Ivan Mamzurin, Corporal Ilya Martynenko, Lt Lev Ovchinnikov, Omplevchinkov, Corporal C Omplev. , Sergeant Stanislav Petrutyk, Sergeant Roman Pomelov, Snr WO Pavel Rudenko, Snr Lt Alexander Sheligin, Sergeant Nikolai Smirnov, Col Sergey Sukharev, Maxim Svetlenko, Snr Lt Nikolai Simov, Daniil Titov, Maxim Trokai, Ivan Alexey, Svetsevo Vogt, Maxim Alexey Yelimov , Kpl Artem Yergin, Sergeant Ravshan Zakbaev, Kpl Danila Zhudkov
Russia military vs us, china russia military, russia military training, military history of russia, china russia military exercise, russia vs nato military, ukraine vs russia military, military russia, military surplus russia, us military and russia, russia military watch, russia military budget
0 Comments