The grim silence of "Cargo 200": Uncovering Russia's hidden losses
The place entered by the author of the recording posted online was likely an industrial warehouse converted into a military morgue. A Russian soldier went in to find the body of an acquaintance. He found the coffin of a friend, but it was someone different than the one he was looking for. There were hundreds of bodies in total in the warehouse.
The recording shows a massive warehouse resembling an industrial storage facility. Soldiers guard the entrance. The video also shows military personnel and morgue workers wearing white work coveralls. There isn't a single woman among them. A man in black civilian clothing stands out, possibly an employee of a funeral company.
Crates with the inscription "Cargo 200"
The video shows the author moving through a hall filled with crates labelled "Cargo 200." "Cargo" is a Russian term meaning load, while "200" is simply a label for a shipment containing a human body. These types of crates are wartime coffins.
After finding a series of coffins marked with the label "Irkutsk" (the name of a city in Russia), he begins to read the names of the individuals in the crates.
At one point, he reads the name "Korsetsky," and from his comment, it can be inferred that it was someone he knew. He continues to search, saying he wants to find Parnikov. He leaves without finding the body of the acquaintance he was searching for.
As he exits, he passes the soldiers, informing them of his unsuccessful search. As he moves away from them, we hear the words, "What a horrible stench! I need to get out of here."
The next hall presents more unpleasant sights. There lie the bodies of men on metal beds – some undressed, others in uniforms, and yet others covered with a sheet. It is in this hall that the deceased are "enclosed" in coffins. Hence the sound of nails being hammered.
Up to a hundred coffins could be in the video. However, where and when the recording was made is unknown.
Losses among Russians - closely guarded secret
According to independent Russian media, since the beginning of the attack on Ukraine until now, over 74,000 Russian soldiers have died in combat. Recently, more soldiers have been dying than on average during 2022 and 2023. However, these numbers are significantly underestimated.
