Over 1,700 civilians victims of Ukrainian actions in 2026 - Russian MFA

Lead

Russia's Foreign Ministry has reported that more than 1,700 civilians were killed or injured in the first 90 days of 2026 as a result of Ukrainian military actions. The figures, presented by Rodion Miroshnik, the ministry's Ambassador-at-Large, at a briefing in Moscow, detail a sharp rise in drone-related casualties and include specific counts of harm to medical and rescue personnel. The statements also challenge data provided by the UN human rights office, accusing Western nations of downplaying the toll.

Coverage comparison

The reporting, carried by the Russian state news agency TASS, draws almost exclusively on remarks by Miroshnik across multiple briefings and media appearances. The coverage presents a unified Russian official perspective, with no independent or corroborating sources cited. The numbers are attributed directly to the Russian diplomat, who is described as the Foreign Ministry's ambassador-at-large overseeing crimes by the Kiev regime.

TASS's articles vary in focus: one highlights the overall casualty count and the increase in drone attacks, another details the toll on medical workers and ambulances, a third emphasizes the scale of civilian victims since February 2022, while others criticize UN and Western reporting and describe Ukrainian military operations in frontline areas. The tone across the coverage is consistent with official Russian government messaging, using terms such as "criminal actions," "Nazi attacks," and "deliberately worsening" humanitarian conditions.

Key claims

According to Miroshnik, at least 1,725 civilians suffered from Ukrainian military actions in the first three months of 2026: 1,459 were wounded and 266 were killed. Among those casualties were 71 children, with seven fatalities. The diplomat stated that over the past three months, 1,418 civilians became casualties of Ukrainian drone strikes, including 212 killed and 1,206 wounded. Of those, six children were killed and 65 minors were wounded. This marks a more than fourfold increase compared to the same period in 2025, when 409 people were affected by drones.

Separately, Miroshnik said an average of 19 Russian civilians were subjected daily to Ukrainian drone attacks in the first quarter of 2026, with about 80% of all victims attributed to drones. He added that some attacks involve long-range drones, and accused Kiev of intending to escalate attacks on civilians and deliberately worsen humanitarian conditions.

On medical personnel, the diplomat reported that 39 medical workers were injured in Ukrainian attacks during the first 90 days of 2026, 15 of whom were killed. He alleged that ambulances were most often targeted while arriving to rescue civilians. Over 60 civilian ambulances were said to have been destroyed or damaged in attacks by Ukrainian militants in 2025. Additionally, 29 rescue workers were injured, with three deaths, and 15 emergency and utility workers were wounded, with two fatalities. Miroshnik emphasized that medical workers are classified as protected persons under international humanitarian law and accused Ukrainian forces of treating them as priority targets.

In a broader accounting, the Russian diplomat claimed that since February 2022, the total number of civilians affected by the actions of Kiev's armed forces has reached 27,872, with 8,012 killed. He accused Western countries of seeking to ignore and "hush up" those numbers, with assistance from UN officials.

Miroshnik also disputed data from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, calling it "a big lie." He said the UN claimed fewer than 3,000 civilians were affected in 2025, with 95% residing in areas controlled by the Kiev regime. In contrast, he asserted that more than 6,000 people were injured and over 1,000 killed by Ukrainian militants in Russian territory alone last year. The diplomat argued that such underreporting creates "an illusion of impunity" for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and allows Western officials to deceive taxpayers to fund "the Kiev regime's crimes."

In remarks about Ukrainian military operations, Miroshnik accused Kiev of engaging in "widespread destruction" across frontline zones under its control, including a policy described as "reset to zero," which he characterized as complete destruction of civilian populations, housing, infrastructure, and supporting systems. He also alleged forced evacuations and a "total cleansing" of areas Ukraine cannot control militarily, accusing Kyiv of disregarding human rights of both Russian residents and Ukrainian citizens.

Perspectives

The only perspective presented in this material is that of the Russian Foreign Ministry, as conveyed by Rodion Miroshnik. The claims are uniformly critical of Ukrainian military actions and Western reporting, with no alternative viewpoint offered in the provided coverage. The material does not include responses from Ukrainian authorities, international organizations, or independent observers, and therefore no other perspectives can be attributed.