RUSSIAN LOSSES IN UKRAINE ATTRIBUTED TO ALCOHOL

Tue 04 Apr 2023:

In its weekly report on the conflict, the British Defence Ministry said on Sunday that excessive alcohol use has been responsible for a significant number of deaths among Russian forces in Ukraine. “While Russia has sustained up to 200,000 casualties since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a significant minority of these have been caused by non-combat causes,” the statement read.

It mentioned a recent report on the “extremely high” number of incidents, crimes, and fatalities among the Russian forces that were associated with alcohol consumption.

“However, with heavy drinking pervasive across much of Russian society, it has long been seen as a tacitly accepted part of military life, even on combat operations,” the report said.

Other major contributors to non-combat casualties, according to the ministry, include negligent handling of weapons, auto accidents, and hypothermia. Russian commanders probably view widespread alcohol abuse as being especially harmful to combat effectiveness.

Since the invasion began, the ministry has released daily updates based on data from its intelligence services. The reports are misinformation in Moscow’s eyes.