Russia likely to mobilize at least 300,000 more troops to Ukraine war, Zelensky warns

Russia is likely to mobilize another 300,000 troops later this year, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, as it tries to complete the capture of a long-coveted region of eastern Ukraine.

In wide-ranging remarks, Zelensky said he expected that the Russians would end the year occupying the same amount of Ukrainian territory as at the beginning of the year, despite enormous losses of manpower.

“Russia has lost 267,000 personnel since the start of the year, including around 155,000 killed to date,” Zelensky claimed. The figure is impossible to independently confirm but aligns with broader estimates by Western officials.

With Russian parliamentary elections approaching, speculation about a fresh mobilization has grown, despite a 2022 draft triggering protests and an exodus of young men.

“We are confident that following the elections, they will carry out a mobilization. We believe this will not take place in the major cities,” Zelensky said.

He indicated he believed Vladimir Putin would deploy the 300,000 newly mobilized troops depending on the situation in eastern Ukraine, having instructed military commanders to complete the occupation of Donetsk by the end of the year.

“They’ll lose all 300,000 of these newly mobilized Russians there; we’ll wipe them out,” Zelensky asserted.

Ukrainian units continue to defend roughly 20% of Donetsk, including a belt of strategic industrial towns such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.

Zelensky dismissed the possibility of Russia completing the capture of the Donetsk region, though he suggested Russian forces might attempt additional incursions into the northern Ukrainian regions of Kharkiv and Sumy.

“They do not yet have troops in the Bryansk region, but we can see military equipment along the borders with the Russian Federation,” he noted.

Addressing air defense constraints, Zelensky contrasted the 675 Patriot missiles supplied in 2023 with the projected 264 expected this year. Ballistic missile strikes have increasingly targeted civilian infrastructure, and Patriot interceptors remain the primary countermeasure.

“As you can see, there is, unfortunately, a downward trend, and this depends primarily on the American side,” Zelensky stated. He noted that if the United States supplied up to 10% of its Patriot missile inventory, Ukraine would purchase them. A similar supply constraint exists with European Aster air defense systems. Ukraine’s long-range missile program receives a strategic boost as incoming British Prime Minister Andy Burnham makes an official visit to Kyiv.

London has agreed to allow defense firm MBDA to share classified technical details on UK components to assist Ukraine in manufacturing its own long-range SCALP cruise missiles. Simultaneously, Ukraine continues using long-range drones and domestic cruise missiles against targets inside Russia to disrupt launch sites.

Zelensky estimated Russian defense industries are capable of producing around 1,300 ballistic missiles annually. Regarding satellite intelligence, Zelensky noted ongoing discussions with Washington over access to Starlink imagery of Russian territory.

According to Zelensky, Starlink owner Elon Musk expressed concern that providing such access could lead to a major escalation. On diplomatic tracks, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have met with Ukrainian officials to map out options for concluding the conflict.

“Jared, Steve and I agreed to summarize all these discussions on a single page, setting out the realistic options for ending the war. This is what the Americans want to discuss with us and with the Russians,” Zelensky said.