More than 9,800 Russian troops have been killed and more than 16,000 wounded since the invasion of Ukraine began on Feb. 24, according to a report published and then deleted by a pro-Kremlin tabloid, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
Journal foreign affairs correspondent Yaroslav Trofimov tweeted a screenshot of the article, which began by citing Ukrainian reports of Russian casualties claiming that over 14,000 Russian troops have been killed.
The article in Komsomolskaya Pravda, one of Russia’s most widely read newspapers, also cites Ukrainian claims that, as of Sunday, Russia had lost 96 aircraft and 118 helicopters.
“The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation refutes the information,” the article continues. “According to the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, during the special operation in Ukraine, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation lost 9,861 [soldiers] killed” and “16,153 … injured.”