Trump Alleges Ukraine is Misrepresenting Casualty Figures
Former US President Donald Trump asserts that Ukraine is deliberately concealing the casualty figures in its conflict with Russia. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
The former U.S. president has attributed the ongoing conflict to the Biden administration, reiterating his commitment to achieving peace if he is reelected.
In a recent appearance on the Lex Fridman podcast, U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump accused Ukraine of deliberately concealing the actual number of casualties in its conflict with Russia. He asserted that “the death numbers are going to be a lot higher than people think” as the situation develops and the details emerge.
Confirming troop losses has proven difficult, with Ukrainian President Zelensky estimating earlier this year that the death toll was around 31,000, while various Russian and foreign assessments suggest it could be significantly greater.
“They lie about the numbers,” Trump stated in the podcast, without providing specific reasons for his belief that the Ukrainian government is doing this. It is generally understood that during wartime, nations tend to exaggerate enemy casualties while minimizing their own losses.
“They try and keep [the numbers] low. They knock down a building that’s two blocks long, and they say one person was mildly injured. No, no, a lot of people were killed… millions of people,” he continued.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that between the onset of the conflict in February 2022 and July 31, 2024, there have been 11,520 civilian deaths, acknowledging that the actual figures might be higher. In a report from last month, unnamed U.S. officials informed the New York Times that approximately 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed during the conflict.
During the podcast, Trump labeled the war with Russia as “a war that shouldn’t have happened,” criticizing President Joe Biden's administration for not taking the necessary actions to avert it. He emphasized that the current circumstances have made establishing a peace agreement “a much tougher deal to make than it would’ve been before it started.”
Trump reiterated his previous promise to resolve the conflict and “have a deal made” if he secures victory in the upcoming election.
Ukraine seldom releases official data on civilian casualties, making accurate assessments challenging due to the lack of reliable independent counts. The most recent figures published in June of last year indicated around 10,000 civilian deaths; however, Oleg Gavilch, a senior aide to Zelensky’s chief of staff Andrey Ermak, suggested that the true number could be as high as five times that figure.
Mathilde Moreau contributed to this report for TROIB News
In a recent appearance on the Lex Fridman podcast, U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump accused Ukraine of deliberately concealing the actual number of casualties in its conflict with Russia. He asserted that “the death numbers are going to be a lot higher than people think” as the situation develops and the details emerge.
Confirming troop losses has proven difficult, with Ukrainian President Zelensky estimating earlier this year that the death toll was around 31,000, while various Russian and foreign assessments suggest it could be significantly greater.
“They lie about the numbers,” Trump stated in the podcast, without providing specific reasons for his belief that the Ukrainian government is doing this. It is generally understood that during wartime, nations tend to exaggerate enemy casualties while minimizing their own losses.
“They try and keep [the numbers] low. They knock down a building that’s two blocks long, and they say one person was mildly injured. No, no, a lot of people were killed… millions of people,” he continued.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that between the onset of the conflict in February 2022 and July 31, 2024, there have been 11,520 civilian deaths, acknowledging that the actual figures might be higher. In a report from last month, unnamed U.S. officials informed the New York Times that approximately 70,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed during the conflict.
During the podcast, Trump labeled the war with Russia as “a war that shouldn’t have happened,” criticizing President Joe Biden's administration for not taking the necessary actions to avert it. He emphasized that the current circumstances have made establishing a peace agreement “a much tougher deal to make than it would’ve been before it started.”
Trump reiterated his previous promise to resolve the conflict and “have a deal made” if he secures victory in the upcoming election.
Ukraine seldom releases official data on civilian casualties, making accurate assessments challenging due to the lack of reliable independent counts. The most recent figures published in June of last year indicated around 10,000 civilian deaths; however, Oleg Gavilch, a senior aide to Zelensky’s chief of staff Andrey Ermak, suggested that the true number could be as high as five times that figure.
Mathilde Moreau contributed to this report for TROIB News
