Russian Defense Ministry says it’s received 48,000 applications for DNA testing from relatives seeking missing soldiers

Deputy Defense Minister Anna Tsivileva revealed during a roundtable discussion at the State Duma on November 26 that the Russian military has received 48,000 applications for DNA testing from the relatives of soldiers gone missing in Ukraine, Astra Press reported this week. Tsivileva’s remarks were streamed live online, but the recording is mysteriously missing from the State Duma’s website, journalists at iStories reported on Tuesday.

Following Tsivileva’s comments, State Duma Defense Committee Chairman Andrey Kartapolov asked her not to disclose Russia’s missing soldier numbers. “This is sensitive, confidential information. When the final documents are drawn up, we must ensure these figures do not appear anywhere,” he said. 

Tsivileva then corrected Kartapolov, saying she’d referred to 48,000 applications, not 48,000 missing soldiers. “Many [relatives] will find their loved ones. Therefore, this figure reflects the number of applications, not statistics,” she explained. It remains unclear if these tens of thousands of DNA applications concern officially missing soldiers or were merely submitted to the military’s unified database of all personnel serving on the front lines.

Russia does not officially disclose how many of its soldiers have been reported missing in Ukraine. Journalists at RFE/RL report that some soldiers are categorized as missing in action and later declared dead without conclusive evidence of death, leaving their families to bury empty coffins.