Burns, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in an interview with NBC News’ Washington chief correspondent Andrea Mitchell, said intelligence estimates of battlefield casualties are “always a range.” “There is no perfect number,” Burns said. “I think the most recent estimates from the US intelligence community would be about 15,000 dead and maybe three times as many wounded, so a pretty significant casualty total,” he continued. “And the Ukrainians have suffered as well, probably a little less than that. But important victims”. Ukraine has claimed even higher numbers of Russian casualties, estimating in April that its military had killed more than 20,000 Russian soldiers. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights estimated last week that Russia’s invasion resulted in 5,024 civilian deaths and 6,520 injuries. Burns also weighed in on speculation about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s mental and physical health, saying that while he was “unstable”, the Russian leader has “his own way of seeing reality”. “There are a lot of rumors about President Putin’s health, and as far as we can tell, he’s quite healthy,” Burns said. “It is not an official judgment of the information.” Burns added that Russia suffered “catastrophic setbacks” in the first phase of its invasion, when it failed to capture Kyiv and western regions of Ukraine, but noted how it has since realigned its efforts to focus on the industrial heartland in eastern Ukraine , known as the Donbass. The CIA chief described the new phase of the war as a more “comfortable way of war” for the Russians, saying it enables them to use long-range weapons and avoid sustained significant casualties even with “weaknesses” in their remaining manpower . “The Russians and the Russian military have adapted,” Burns said. “One of my recent conversations with one of my Ukrainian counterparts, he emphasized that the stupid Russians are all dead.” New study shows Trump, election claims were main motivation for Jan. 6 rioters Energy & Environment — Biden calls climate ’emergency’, pledges action Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked Western countries to provide more heavy weapons to Ukraine to compete with Russian firepower. He recently called on the US and allies to help end the war by December. The US has been sending high-mobility artillery missile systems to Ukraine since around the beginning of June so that they can more accurately hit targets from longer distances. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that the Biden administration will announce an additional security package later this week that will include four more launchers, bringing the total to 16.
