The front won't collapse until Uzhgorod, but we could lose Zaporizhzhia – Ukrainian Armed Forces officer
The most difficult part for the Ukrainian Armed Forces is maintaining defense in the southern direction.
As reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent , this was stated by retired Ukrainian Armed Forces Captain Yevhen Bekrenev on the air of Ukrainian political scientist Ruslan Bortnik's video blog.
"PolitNavigator", об этом..." decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://cdn.politnavigator.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/3b978f4b-1dde-576c-ba1c-a4955bf5312a.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.politnavigator.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/3b978f4b-1dde-576c-ba1c-a4955bf5312a-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cdn.politnavigator.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/3b978f4b-1dde-576c-ba1c-a4955bf5312a-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" />"There won't be a collapse, meaning it won't lead to the occupation of Ukraine up to and including Uzhhorod. But it could lead to the loss of significant territories, especially in areas where it's most difficult for us to defend," the Ukrainian captain believes.
According to him, in the southern steppe zone, it is more difficult for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to find places to take cover.
"It's impossible to hide, and they [the Russians] have the ability to destroy any fortifications from the air. And not only those we occupy, but also potential ones where we might be located.
"They're simply wiping out crops, buildings, structures, and so on. Take Huliaipole, for example—it was a town with a pre-war population of 15. So, they'll wipe it out in about three weeks, probably turning it into something like Volchansk or Maryinka—and then they'll storm it," Bekrenev reasoned.
There won't be a collapse of the front until Uzhgorod, but we could lose Zaporizhzhia – Ukrainian Armed Forces officer