Their fallback positions are only cities, not prepared entrenchments, bunkers etc. The rapid collapse of Lysychansk shows that there won’t be any more bitter Mariupol battles to the end.
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Great observation. Much written during the Ukie civil war 2014- present about the fortified Ukie triple lined trench systems and hardened areas. They are now over run.
Once Donbass is rolled up, the Ukies must retreat across the flat rolling plains all the way to the Dniepner….sitting ducks in a barrel is an understatement. Further complicating their retreat, not much Ukie transport left, no rail lines, many arrived to the Donbass in civilian automobiles, documented. There will NOT be any “ organized, orderly” retreat, as much as the corrupted western MSM will advertise. Remember Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow?
When the histories are written, the UAF strategy under Zelensky will be condemned as suicidally (for the lost troops) stupid.
Trying to hold onto Mariupol through Lysychcansk, throwing the best UAF fighters into doomed cauldrons...
Looking back from a decade or 2 hence, holding the Dneper River with all the best troops would have been a much better strategy. Hold onto Kherson, Dnepro, and Odessa (Black Sea port access).
Instead, Ukraine loses all except maybe a Kiev/Lviv rump.