Putin’s Summer Fiasco – 210,000 Casualties, Zero Gains

Russia’s much-vaunted summer offensive of 2025 has collapsed into a strategic disaster. Despite massive losses – over 210,000 troops and thousands of tanks and vehicles – Moscow has achieved almost nothing on the battlefield. From Kherson to Pokrovsk, Kupiansk to Kursk, Russian forces bled for marginal ground while Ukrainian defenses adapted, counterattacked, and destroyed entire battalions. Putin’s summer blitz revealed a war machine plagued by logistical collapse, command ineptitude, and cratering morale. Former Navy SEAL and Kyiv Post correspondent Chuck Pfarrer breaks down the numbers, the failed tactics, and why Russia’s war aims look further away than ever. Key highlights: - Kherson: Drone strikes cripple Russian supply lines - Pokrovsk: Ukraine cedes useless terrain, then counterattacks - Kupiansk: HIMARS obliterates two Russian battalions in 30 minutes - Kursk: 19,000 Russian troops eliminated in Ukraine’s surprise incursion - Chemical warfare: Russia resorts to banned weapons as desperation grows - Strategic tally: Russia loses the equivalent of 26 divisions for just 0.3% of Ukraine’s territory