Journalists Confirm First 2008-Born Russian Soldier Killed in Ukraine War at 18

2 articles · Updated · Новая газета. Европа · Jun 12

BBC and Mediazona identified Alisher Svirin as the first confirmed Russian soldier born in 2008 to die in the Ukraine war; he was killed on May 1 at age 18.
Svirin served as a contract machine gunner in the 123rd Separate Guards Motorised Rifle Brigade, and his age means he could have been at the front for no more than three months.
He was buried in the Moscow region on May 28, marking the first journalist-confirmed death of a Russian serviceman from the 2008 birth cohort.
At least 200 Russian soldiers aged 18 have been killed on the front lines since the full-scale invasion began, underscoring how quickly the war is reaching the youngest eligible recruits.

Sources

As Russia sends its first 2008-born soldier to die, what is the ultimate cost to its own future?

With nearly 500,000 dead, is Russia's reliance on teenage soldiers a sign its war machine is finally breaking?