Russia imported £66 million worth of artificial limbs and joints from Germany in the first half of 2026, more than five times the amount brought in before the war began, as the scale of maimed soldiers returning from the front line continues to grow.
Across the European Union, imports of prosthetic products reached £126 million in the year to June, almost double the pre-war figure, with NATO member states the Netherlands and Belgium also among the suppliers. The surge reflects the heavy toll of injuries among Russian forces in Ukraine.
Humanitarian Exemptions Allow Continued Trade
Despite sweeping Western sanctions aimed at crippling Moscow's economy, Germany continues to legally ship advanced prosthetics to Russia under strict humanitarian exemptions that protect the supply of essential medicine and healthcare equipment. Berlin dominates the global market in precision orthopaedics, with German firm Ottobock leading the world in advanced bionic joints and microprocessor knees that Russia's sanctioned domestic industry cannot manufacture.
A Ukrainian report mocked the situation, saying: "You're at war with NATO. You could have ordered them from friendly North Korea or Myanmar."
Scale of Losses Revealed
According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russia has lost over 1.58 million troops in Ukraine since the start of its full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. The number includes 1,510 casualties suffered over the past day. Ukraine's General Staff has not revealed its own losses, citing operational secrecy.
Equipment losses include 12,448 tanks, 51,674 artillery systems, 25,609 armoured fighting vehicles, 356 helicopters and 449 aircraft, with total military equipment losses estimated at £153 billion.
Cost of the Conflict
Statistics from Ukraine's military highlight how Russia could have spent the money wasted on the conflict. The war chest could have paid for 1,000 new schools and 200 hospitals. It could also have made a rouble millionaire of every child born since the invasion began, with roughly £9,400 each in their own bank accounts. Pensions could have doubled with a boost in family support, and some 6,200 miles of new motorway might have been built.
Russia is paying out more than £71 million a day in benefits to the wounded and relatives of those slain in the war.
