In April alone, 35 203 Russians were killed or seriously wounded in the war against Ukraine. The strategic goal is to kill 200 Russians for every square kilometer of advance.
This was stated by Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov at a meeting with journalists.
According to his data, in March this figure was 35 351, in December — 34 544. If in October 2025 Russia lost 67 soldiers per 1 km² of advance, then in January — already 165, in February — 244, in March — 254, in April — 179.
The minister added that all these figures were verified through the “ePoints” system and confirmed by combat units.
About protecting the sky
According to Fedorov, the percentage of “Shaheds” shot down by interceptor drones has doubled over the past 4 months — although the number of “Shaheds” launched by the Russian Federation each month has increased by 35%. Also, over the past 4 months, Ukraine has received 2.6 times more interceptor drones.
"Our strategic goal is to achieve a stable rate of 95% interception of air targets. The introduction of after-action review played an important role in this process. This is a standard NATO procedure for a detailed analysis of combat operations after their completion. For us, this has become one of the key elements of building a modern air defense system," he emphasized.
About cheap missiles against the "Shaheds"
"We have already found solutions that are close to being ready and have begun testing them. The current task is to scale production dozens of times and have a stock of such missiles for the fall and winter," says Fedorov.
He emphasized that this will help further protect critical infrastructure. To do this, grants are being issued, production is being scaled up, and team recruitment is being restarted.
About private air defense
27 enterprises across Ukraine have already joined the pilot project. The Ministry of Defense granted them the status of authorized to perform air defense tasks. They concluded a joint decision with the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and began organizing their own air defense groups.
They are currently at various stages of readiness: they are training air defense group members, purchasing weapons (interceptor drones, electronic warfare systems, radars, automated turrets, etc.), and receiving weapons from the Ukrainian Armed Forces warehouses (machine guns, explosives).
The air defense groups of two enterprises in the Kharkiv and Odesa regions have already begun full-scale operation: they shot down almost 20 enemy "Shaheds" and reconnaissance drones, as well as a "Shahed" jet.
About the focus of work for the coming months
Changes in recruiting.
The Ministry of Defense is preparing the first projects that will provide for a fair payment model, a new contract system with clear terms of service and a clear rotation logic, new approaches to staffing units, and a reduction in the percentage of non-commissioned officers.
Fight against corruption.
Fedorov promises that summer will be the time to transition to tender procedures in defense procurement.
"We have already conducted the largest competitive procurement procedure for 155 mm long-range artillery rounds and achieved savings of over 16%. The next step is to transfer drone procurement to tenders," he noted.
In parallel, the Ministry of Defense is launching a number of important anti-corruption reforms, particularly in the field of research and development and state quality assurance.
In addition, the Ministry of Defense is preparing to launch a basic guaranteed minimum of drones for brigades.
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