The occupation forces of Russia in Ukraine currently number 462 thousand people. In addition, there are 35 000 servicemen of the Russian Guard in Ukraine, who ensure the work of the occupation regime.
A representative of the Main Directorate of Intelligence (also known as GUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Vadym Skibitskyi told about this.
"Such a number of troops in our territories allows the Russians to carry out rotation: to withdraw those units and units that have lost their combat capability — where the number of personnel is less than 50% — to the rear areas. And after recovery and replenishment, they go to the front line again," noted Skibitskyi.
He also said that in 2024, Russia plans to increase the production of ammunition, but has a number of problems related to the lack of components, qualified personnel and production facilities. According to GUR estimates, the Russian Federation will have a shortage of 500 000 ammunition, as in the previous year.
The defense industry of the Russian Federation is able to produce 2 million ammunition per year (122 and 152 mm shells), but last year, due to a shortage of half a million shells, Russia exported shells from Belarus, and then bought them from Iran and North Korea.
- In February 2022, when Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, there were about 190 000 military personnel on the Ukrainian border. In December 2023, according to GUR estimates, there were 443 000 occupiers of the Russian army in Ukraine and another 30 000 from the Russian Guard, i.e., their number is constantly growing.