New blow for Putin as military intelligence colonel, 37, is killed in Ukraine as Britain reveals Russian casualties are as high as 200,000

• Putin also lost a decorated paratrooper who appeared in his New Year speech
• Britain says ratio of Russian soldiers killed to injured was high in modern era

Vladimir Putin has suffered a double blow to his war effort in Ukraine, losing a military intelligence colonel and a decorated paratrooper in a matter of days, as Britain estimates Russia has suffered as many as 200,000 casualties.

Lt-Col Viktor Fursov, 37, was killed on a combat mission, although the exact circumstances of his death have not been disclosed.

He has since been posthumously awarded the Russian Order of Courage, and his funeral is due to take place on Friday.

The army intelligence officer had trained in the Novosibirsk Higher Military Command School at the Faculty of Intelligence.

In a second setback, a Russian paratrooper honoured by Putin in his New Year address has also been killed in Ukraine.

Lt-Col Viktor Fursov (left), 37, was killed on a combat mission, although the exact circumstances of his death have not been disclosed. In a second setback, Senior Lieutenant Yuri Schneider – a Russian paratrooper honoured by Putin in his New Year address (shown right) – has also been killed in Ukraine

A Ukrainian tank moves on snow covered road as military mobility continues within the Russian-Ukrainian war in Donbas, Ukraine on February 14, 2023

Senior Lieutenant Yuri Schneider, 26, like Fursov, was among those to die amid record Russian losses in the war unleashed by the Kremlin dictator.

We Can Explain media, citing fellow Russian servicemen, claimed Schneider sacrificed his life using his body as a shield to protect his comrades from a grenade.

This account could not be immediately verified.

Schneider was visible as Putin addressed Russians at New Year with a bellicose anti-Western speech in front of troops serving in Ukraine.

He stood directly behind Putin’s right shoulder.

Normally, the Russian president uses the Kremlin as a backdrop for his annual midnight address broadcast across Russia’s 11 time zones as New Year approaches.

Schneider said in a TV interview later: ‘Immediately before the New Year, the Supreme Commander [Vladimir Putin] awarded me with the Order of Courage.

‘To receive such an award from the Supreme Commander was a big joy in my life. I will remember this for the rest of my life,’ he said.

The footage was filmed by pro-Kremlin media Izvestia and used for propaganda purposes. 

He said: ‘I arrived in my unit with a fighting spirit and am ready to go only forward and only to victory.’

Schneider was visible as Putin addressed Russians at New Year with a bellicose anti-Western speech in front of troops serving in Ukraine. He stood directly behind Putin’s right shoulder

Pictured: Vladimir Putin is handed a bag to present to Paratrooper Schneider (seen left)

Ukraine and its western allies say Putin is sacrificing unprecedented numbers of Russia’s soldiers in a war to illegally invade the sovereign state.

Some reports have said more than 800 Russians a day are being killed on the battlefield, amid accusations Putin is using mobilised troops as cannon fodder in First World War-style tactics across the eastern frontline.

Estimates vary on the Russian toll in the war but are now likely to exceed 100,000. Ukraine says more than 140,000 have been killed since February 2022.

In an intelligence update on Friday, Britain’s Ministry of Defence said that Russian forces – including private military contractor Wagner – have ‘likely’ suffered between 175-200,000 casualties since the start of Putin’s invasion.

‘This likely includes approximately 40-60,000 killed. The Russian casualty rate has significantly increased since September 2022 when ‘partial mobilisation’ was imposed,’ the update says.

The MoD said the ratio of Russians killed to those injured was high by modern standards, suggesting wounded soldiers were receiving poor medical treatment.

‘By modern standards, these figures represent a high ratio of personnel killed compared to those wounded,’ the update said. ‘This is almost certainly due to extremely rudimentary medical provision across much of the force. Artillery has almost certainly inflicted the majority of Russia’s casualties.

‘Wagner PMC forces have deployed large numbers of convict-recruits. These have probably experienced a casualty rate of up to 50 percent,’ it added. 

Meanwhile on Friday, Putin formally appointed Lieutenant General Rustam Muradov, 49, commander of the Eastern Military District.

He has already been in the job for several months now.

He will be in charge of eastern Russia, yet last month was with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in the war zone – to Russia’s west.

Muradov has been described by critics as a ‘cruel and incompetent’ commander, accused of treating marines as ‘meat’ and lying over military losses so he can win Russia’s top medal. He was also dubbed a ‘mediocrity’ for his war role.

Other confirmed changes were Lieutenant General Evgeny Nikiforov, 52, appointed commander of the Western Military District, and Colonel General Sergeyl Kuzovlev, 56, as commander of the troops of the Southern Military District.

Pictured: A destroyed Russian tank is seen on the battlefield in east Ukraine on Thursday

Pictured: Ukrainian serviceman of the State Border Guard Service fire a mortar toward the Russian position in Bakhmut on February 16

As the list of Russian military setbacks have mounted up over the course of the war, Putin has made several changes to the leadership of his armies.

One recent change that led to criticism of Putin from Russian milbloggers was the appointment of  Colonel-General Alexander Lapin as chief of staff of the country’s ground forces.

Lapin, previously commander of Russia’s central military district, was blasted last October by hawkish allies of Putin after Russian forces were driven out of the city of Lyman in eastern Ukraine, a key logistics hub.

The loss of Lyman was seen as the most humiliating defeat in Ukraine so far, largely due to its location in Ukraine’s east, where Russian forces are at their strongest.

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