You didn't say casualties, you said deaths, which is the number the Ukrainian government gives too. >If there’s so few casualties of the initial invading force

You didn't say casualties, you said deaths, which is the number the Ukrainian government gives too. >If there’s so few casualties of the initial invading force it makes absolutely no sense for putin to start mobilisation, which he did. Russian army doctrine is different to US army doctrine. Russia always had a conscription heavy army and needs vastly more manpower than the US to fight a war. I imagine they were expecting the Ukrainian army to collapse like the army in Georgia did in 2008 which is why they weren't prepared for an actual fight. This is the first real war between advanced economies since Desert Storm. It is a painful lesson that second rate powers can again standup to first rate powers on the ground since military tech now costs pennies on the million. I _really_ hope the West is taking notes because if we're not than we're in for a surprise just as unpleasant as the one the Russians are getting.