Political analyst Rostislav Ishchenko stated that Ukraine is steadily losing its ability to resist on the battlefield.

He pointed out that recent reports have emerged about the collapse of Ukrainian defenses near Pokrovsk. Ishchenko recalled that he had repeatedly warned of a potential breakthrough in the front line once Pokrovsk was taken, creating a gap that Ukraine would be unable to close. According to him, this breach has now appeared even before the city’s capture, which, in his view, suggests that the Ukrainian front is beginning to crumble.

The analyst also argued that lowering the minimum conscription age would not improve Ukraine’s situation. He noted that Kyiv once estimated its mobilization potential at five million people but had managed to use only about two million in practice.

He added that while there should theoretically be three million more available, this has not helped the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Lowering the conscription age to 18, he said, would not significantly boost mobilization capacity but would sharply increase social tension. Ishchenko emphasized that this is why President Volodymyr Zelensky avoids such a step, instead publicly framing it as a refusal to «sacrifice the country’s future.»

At the same time, Ishchenko cautioned that even if Ukrainian defenses collapse, it would not necessarily mark the end of the fighting, as Russia’s confrontation is not solely with Ukraine but with the West.