Will Putin launch mobilization? Zelenskyy gives assessment
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (president.gov.ua)
Russian troops lost 89,000 soldiers killed and seriously wounded on the front between January 1 and March 26 this year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at the Bucha Summit 2026.
"Yesterday I received statistics: they (Russia - ed.) lost 89,000 personnel from January 1 to March 26 — killed and seriously wounded. That is, we are talking about irreversible losses of personnel. This is a very serious figure," he said.
Zelenskyy also spoke about the pace of mobilization in Russia. According to him, the Russian army plans to recruit 409,000 personnel in 2026.
"We see that they have mobilized, I think, about 20–22% (of the planned - ed.) as of this March date," the President said.
Russian losses versus recruitment rates
The head of state drew attention to the ratio between Russian losses and mobilization capacity.
"One-fifth (of 409,000 - ed.) is about 80,000. They have lost more. This is an important signal," he noted.
Zelenskyy also said he had received a report from Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi, who reported increased Russian activity in the Pokrovsk direction. At the same time, the Russian army failed to make significant advances, and the situation remains under control.
Will the Kremlin launch a general mobilization
Zelenskyy also said he doubts that Russia will conduct a general mobilization in the near future, although he noted that he does not have full information on the matter.
"I would not rush to say that they will definitely carry out general mobilization. Why? In my view, there have been such signals, but there is no confirmation of this information. Therefore, I am not sure they intend to do this in the near future. At the same time, again, there is no complete information," he said.
The president suggested that if Russia does take such a step, it would mean it is planning aggression against other states.
"From our analysis, we understand that if Putin goes for general mobilization, it will not only increase pressure on our territory, but could also indicate potential moves against Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia," Zelenskyy stressed.
Recently, Zelenskyy said that the United States had set a condition under which Ukraine would have to withdraw its troops from the Donbas to receive security guarantees.
According to the Ukrainian President, Washington is ready to finalize these guarantees "at a high level" as soon as Kyiv agrees to this step.
Later, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Zelenskyy’s statement "a lie." According to him, Ukrainian authorities had been told something different. He stressed that the point was that security guarantees would not come into effect until the war ended.
