Kanyshai Butun
04 August 2026•Update: 04 August 2026
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday claimed that Ukrainian drones killed or wounded more than 30,000 Russian soldiers on the front line in July.
In an evening address, Zelenskyy said Russia is losing about 30,000 troops each month on the battlefield.
“And in total, during this July, all our units on the front destroyed 30,272 Russians precisely with drones. These are the eliminated and seriously wounded,” he said, citing military data with video confirmation.
On possible negotiations with Russia, Zelenskyy said Kyiv remains in daily contact with US President Donald Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is also Trump’s son-in-law.
“We will be ready for all formats of meetings; we expect that now, in August, Witkoff and Kushner will be active,” he said.
Zelenskyy added that Ukraine is also working with other partners, particularly Gulf countries, to support its diplomatic efforts and security needs.
Russia has not yet commented on the claims, and they could not be independently verified due to the ongoing war.
Under US mediation, Russia and Ukraine last held three rounds of peace talks this January and February in a bid to find a settlement for the armed conflict, which is now in its fifth year.
Negotiations have since been paused, with Moscow and Kyiv attributing the halt to the US focus on Iran and the armed conflict in the Middle East, which began on Feb. 28.
