By: Cecilia Zhang
When a 24 year-old told his mom that he was going to join the Russian army, his mom cried and begged him not to go. By May 15th he had an AK-47 in his arms; the next day he died.
That 24-year-old soldier is not alone. Although it is hard to know for sure, as the government is concealing the war’s death count, he is one of an estimated 15,000 Russian casualties.
Vladimir Krot , a 59 year-old pilot, begged to serve in Ukraine. He was finally told yes but days later he died when his SU-25 jet went down during a training flight. He left his Wife and 8 year-old daughter.
Dmitry Shkrebet’s son Yegor who was on the Black Sea flagship Moskva that sunk was listed Missing. On Tuesday, 111 days after Yegor’s death Dmitry finaly got the Death Certificate. “It will never be easier,” Shkrebets wrote in a post. “There will never be true joy. We will never be the same again. We have become different, we have become more unhappy, but also stronger, tougher. We no longer fear even those who should be feared.”
Bobo Lo of the Lowy institute believes Kremlin has contained the risk of unrest over high casualty counts. Politically, Russian President Vladimir Putin “has been able to defend this,” said Lo, a former deputy head of mission at the Australian Embassy in Moscow. “Partly through controlling the information narrative, but also because this is now seen as a war against the West.”
Familes are afraid to speak out and no casualty counts, independent media and rights groups keep their own tallies that are modest. The Independent Russian outlet Mediazona and BBC News Russian said that there are 5,185 dead on July 29. In Moscow lost 11 service men and St. Petersburg lost 35.
Cia and British Intelligence estimates that at least 15000 Russians have been killed as of Late February. The of Russian soldiers showed Russian Military's desperation, he signed a three-month contract and was excited to see how much he would get paid. Nina Chubrina thinks that he was trying to prove himself a man to get back his ex-wife.