Ukraine’s Envoy Says Russia Would Need Millions More Troops to Occupy Territory

Kyiv’s UN representative rejected Russian demands and argued that Moscow’s war losses far outweigh its territorial gains. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied (Photo by Andrii Melnyk/X) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Andrii Melnyk, said on Monday that Russia would need to deploy millions more troops to fully occupy Ukrainian territory, arguing that the human cost of its offensive is unsustainable. Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting , Melnyk said Ukraine rejects Russian ultimatums and will not cede any part of its territory. Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . “Ukraine will never leave a single square millimeter of its land,” he said. Melnyk presented calculations suggesting that Russian forces lose an average of 254 soldiers for every square kilometer (0.4 square miles) of Ukrainian territory captured. He argued that at this rate, occupying the entire Donetsk region would require at least 1.5 million additional Russian troops, while a full occupation of Ukraine would be “unrealistic,” potentially taking decades and incurring massive losses. Melnyk also criticized Moscow’s war strategy, saying Russia is “burning its own population” for limited territorial gains. The war in Ukraine has increasingly been characterized by slow territorial advances and high casualty rates, particularly in eastern regions such as Donetsk. Western and Ukrainian officials have repeatedly said that Russia’s offensive comes at a high human cost , while Moscow continues to push for territorial concessions as a condition for negotiations. Ukraine has consistently rejected such demands, insisting that any peace settlement must respect its territorial integrity. Other Topics of Interest Russian Drone Attack Hits Medical Facility in Sumy, Injures Teenager and Three Others Russian drones struck a residential area in Sumy overnight, damaging apartment buildings, cars and a medical facility and injuring four people, including a 17-year-old. To suggest a correction or clarification, write to us here You can also highlight the text and press Ctrl + Enter Contact Us Please leave your suggestions or corrections here Cancel Send Yuliia Zavadska Yuliia Zavadska is a news writer at Kyiv Post. She has experience in breaking news coverage, fact-checking, and digital journalism, with a focus on fast, accurate reporting and clear storytelling. Before joining Kyiv Post, she worked as a news feed editor for several leading Ukrainian media outlets.