Trump claims actual death toll in Russia-Ukraine war higher than reported.

Former President Donald Trump made a bold statement during Thursday’s town hall-style forum, claiming that officials are lying about the real number of casualties suffered in the Russia-Ukraine war.

“The deaths are far more than they’re reporting. When they say: ‘Nine apartment houses got knocked down, and two people got hurt’—no, no, hundreds of people died. The numbers are much different than what you’re being told.”

According to the latest data released by the United Nations Human Rights Office on May 8, at least 8,791 noncombatants were confirmed killed in Ukraine, with 14,815 injured. The United Nations noted that the actual death toll is likely “considerably higher,” and the presented figures are just the tip of the iceberg.

Trump’s Plan to End the War

Speaking in Clive, Iowa, at his second major televised event ahead of the 2024 primary election, Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he gets along with both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin and argued that he would end the war between the two countries in 24 hours.

“I don’t want that war to continue. And I’ll stop that war—mark my words—I’ll stop that war in 24 hours. Right now, it’s a mess, now they’re hitting Kyiv, and they’re hitting all sorts of things that weren’t supposed to be hit. The country is being decimated.”

When Hannity asked how he would end the war in 24 hours, Trump said he knew how to talk to leaders of both countries.

“I will get them into a room, and I know an exact way … you tell one, ‘You’re not going to get anything unless you make a deal.’ You tell the other one, ‘They’re going to get a lot unless you make a deal,’ And you just sit them … and you have to make a determination.”

Trump emphasized that he needed the power of the Oval Office to make this happen, stating that the war “should have never ever started. It’s a horrible war.”

Putin’s Intentions and American Weakness

Trump also stated that he was able to see Putin had the intention to invade Ukraine while he was still in office. “It was always the apple of his eye. I could see that,” he said.

The Republican frontrunner hinted about threats that he apparently made to keep Putin in check.

“I said things that were very bad, very nasty,” he said without disclosing specifics, noting that he thinks Putin believed only about “10 percent” of his admonition, but that was enough.

Trump also stated that Putin, as well as other world leaders, saw it as a sign of American weakness when President Joe Biden hastily evacuated U.S. forces out of Afghanistan and left military equipment behind.

Window Into Casualty Figures

Combat fatalities in the Russia-Ukraine conflict have been notoriously difficult to estimate as neither side gives timely data on military losses. Both countries are also believed to be playing down their own troop losses while inflating the enemy’s, making it very hard to determine the true number of casualties.

However, the United Nations Human Rights Office has been keeping track of noncombatant casualties. According to their latest data, the actual death toll is likely “considerably higher” than the confirmed 8,791 noncombatants killed and 14,815 injured.