Ukraine war latest: The Economist estimates 60,000-100,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed in full-scale war

Key developments on Nov. 27:

• The Economist estimates 60,000-100,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed in full-scale war
• Russia claims Ukraine’s drones, missiles attacked Crimea, explosion reported near airfield
• Ukrainian soldiers repel attempted Russian attack in Zaporizhzhia sector, National Guard commander says
• Trump nominates retired General Keith Kellogg for Ukraine peace envoy

Between 60,000 to 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the full-scale war, and 400,000 more are too injured to fight on, according to estimates by The Economist published on Nov. 26.

Kyiv has largely avoided revealing the full extent of its military casualties, with President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledging only in February that 31,000 Ukrainian fighters have been killed.

Basing its calculations on leaked or published intelligence reports, defense officials, researchers, and open-source intelligence, The Economist wrote that Russia and Ukraine lost a greater share of their population than the U.S. during the Korean and Vietnam wars combined.

Almost one in 20 Ukrainian fighting-age men have been killed or injured because of the war, The Economist wrote.

In September, the Wall Street Journal provided similar estimates, positing that Ukraine had lost 80,000 soldiers killed and 400,000 wounded. The outlet estimated Russia’s losses at up to 200,000 killed and 400,000 injured.

The exact figures for both sides are nearly impossible to establish as Kyiv and Moscow are secretive about their casualties. The last figure provided by Russian authorities was 5,937 killed soldiers as of September 2022.

In turn, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces put Russian overall losses at over 735,000 as of Nov. 27. The losses Russia suffered in the full-scale war are believed to be greater than during all the wars since 1945 combined.

According to The Economist, civilian casualties are even more difficult to establish but likely reach many tens of thousands.

The U.N. mission in Ukraine verified that 11,743 civilians were killed as of the summer, but the number is likely higher due to Russia barring access for monitors to occupied territories, namely to areas that likely saw the heaviest civilian casualties like Mariupol.

Russia claims Ukraine's drones, missiles attacked Crimea, explosion reported near airfield

Ukrainian drones and missiles attacked the seaside city of Sevastopol in occupied Crimea on Nov. 27, the city’s Russian-installed proxy head, Mikhail Razvozhayev, claimed.

Russian air defenses shot down two missiles and five drones, Razvozhayev said, claiming that the Ukrainian projectiles were downed over the water. Drone debris also reportedly fell near the Kacha highway.

The pro-Ukrainian Crimean Wind Telegram channel reported explosions and active air defense in Sevastopol, as well as near the Belbek military airfield and elsewhere on the occupied peninsula.

The channel also shared a photo of the Nakhimov Naval Academy with smoke coming from behind it. The authenticity of the footage or the cause of the smoke could not be immediately verified.

The Mash Telegram channel alleged that around 40 drones, Neptune missiles, and unidentified cruise missiles were flying toward the northwestern part of the Crimean peninsula. All projectiles were shot down, the channel wrote.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.

Ukrainian soldiers repel attempted Russian attack in Zaporizhzhia sector, National Guard commander says

Ukrainian soldiers repelled an attempted Russian offensive in the Zaporizhzhia sector, General Oleksandr Pivnenko, the commander of Ukraine’s National Guard, said on Nov.27.

In early October, Russian troops reportedly renewed their attack in the Zaporizhzhia sector. Kyiv warned of a potential Russian push in the southern region, saying Moscow was deploying trained assault groups to front-line positions in mid-November.

Ukraine’s Spartan Brigade aerial reconnaissance spotted Russian troops planning to attack the National Guard positions with an infantry group in advance, Pivnenko said, sharing footage showing the attack.

He did not specify the scale of the attack or the number of Russian troops involved in the offensive.

According to the commander, Russia is mostly trying to conduct assaults and reconnaissance attacks in the Zaporizhzhia sector with infantry groups consisting of 3 to 10 people.

“The enemy rarely uses equipment,” Pivnenko said. “But our soldiers destroy enemy personnel and firepower quickly and accurately.”

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these reports.

Trump nominates retired General Keith Kellogg for Ukraine peace envoy

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump nominated former national security advisor to the vice president, retired General Keith Kellogg, as a special Ukrainian peace envoy to lead negotiations on an end to Russia’s full-scale war, Trump announced on Nov. 27.

“Together, we will secure peace through strength and make America ang the world safe again,” Trump said on his social media network Truth Social.

In June, Reuters reported that Kellogg and another Trump’s top advisor, Frederick H. Fleitz, proposed him a plan that would cease military aid to Ukraine unless it agrees to hold peace negotiations with Russia.

The two also reportedly proposed to freeze the front lines in their current position and take Ukraine’s NATO accession off the table.

Keith Kellogg, 80, previously served as the Executive Secretary and Chief of Staff of the U.S. National Security Council in the first Trump administration. He also was a top advisor to then U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.

Last week, Reuters reported that Trump was considering his former intelligence director, diplomat Richard Grenell, as a special Ukrainian peace envoy.