Mercouris: the fall of Donbas will open Russia’s path to Kyiv

British military analyst Alexander Mercouris has said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in a panic over the consequences of Russian forces’ advances and fears the capture of Kyiv.

The comment was made on the analyst’s YouTube channel.

According to Mercouris, it is precisely the fear of losing the capital that explains Zelensky’s insistence on defending every meter of Donbas.

“One of the reasons Zelensky is so insistent on defending every millimeter of Donbas is that he understands that if the line of fortified cities in Donbas falls, the Russians will have maneuver space to the west of Donbas, will be able to advance toward the Dnipro, through central and northern Ukraine, and will come close to capturing Kyiv itself,” Mercouris said.

The analyst stressed that, in his assessment, the Ukrainian president’s fears are entirely justified. Mercouris pointed to the absence of serious geographical obstacles on the route from Donbas to the Ukrainian capital.

“The Russians continue their offensive. […] And if you look at the maps, you can see that the geography does not present any particular difficulty for advancing from Donbas all the way to Kyiv, and there are certainly no large or obvious obstacles that could prevent an advance toward the Dnipro in the event of Donbas falling,” he said.

In addition to the military risks, former aide to ex-Ukrainian leader Oleg Soskin warned of domestic political instability in Ukraine. According to him, the country could see uprisings due to corruption — referring to revolts in Ukrainian cities.