In a rare interview, President Putin’s daughter has claimed human life is a “supreme value” in Russia.
Speaking to the investigative news website Agentstvo, Maria Vorontsova, said: “Our society, I mean Russian society, with our life principles, with our culture, with our religion… is after all not so much an economy-centric society.
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“We are to a greater extent, a human-centric society. And for us, the value of human life is a supreme value.
“And every day of life that is lived, even if it’s not so – forgive me for using this word – profitable for the economy, not so significant for the economy, in terms of spiritual values, I think it has a more significant impact for us.”
Vorontsova’s comments will likely raise a few eyebrows given her father has sent hundreds of thousands of men to their deaths in Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
According to official Ukrainian government figures, Russia has lost around 370,000 soldiers so far.
In a rare interview, Putin’s daughter Maria Vorontsova says that human life is a "supreme value" for Russian society
— Francis Scarr (@francis_scarr) January 12, 2024
I wonder if those swept up in her father’s "partial mobilisation" and sent to the likes of Bakhmut or Maryinka would agree pic.twitter.com/FX4reOmirs
Western estimates of the number of Russian deaths in Ukraine are more conservative though still massive – a US assessment in August said Russian fatalities were as high as 120,000 with 170,000 to 180,000 troops injured – a total of 300,000 killed or wounded during the full-scale war in Ukraine.
Yet perhaps more indicative of the Kremlin’s attitude towards the lives of its soldiers are the conditions in which they’re sent to war – with no equipment or training and to be used in what have become known as “meat assaults” on Ukrainian positions.
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Last month a video emerged of a group of Russian soldiers in an expletive-laden video expressing their outrage at learning they will not be territorial defense soldiers as they thought, but would be assault troops sent to the front with no training.
Daily Russian losses from so-called “meat assaults” on Avdiivka in November approached World War I levels.
Imperial Russia lost about 1.8 million soldiers, or on average 1,100 men a day during World War I. In November it was losing approximately 900 soldiers every 24 hours and sometimes more.
Journalist Nikola Mikovic, commented on the clip of Vorontsova, saying: “Sure. Especially lives of Russian soldiers who were forced to storm Ukrainian well-fortified positions.”
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